Causes of Lyme Borreliosis

Lyme disease occurs when a tick bites an individual and deposits a bacteria into the bloodstream.  There are three different species of bacteria that cause this disease and they all belong to the genus Borrelia.

•    Borrelia burgdorferi sensu stricto is the primary bacteria that causes Lyme disease in the United States. 

•    Borrelia afzeli and Borrelia garinii tend to cause Lyme borreliosis in European and Asian countries.

The tick picks up the bacteria by biting rodents who are carriers.  These ticks then bit a human and transfer the bacteria.  In Europe the culprit is mostly the sheep tick, also known as the castor bean tick.  In China it is the taiga tick that can transfer Lyme disease.  In America it is the deer tick that is best known for cause Lyme borreliosis.