The Tufts Lyme Disease Initiative was started by faculty at Tufts with the mission to eliminate Lyme disease as a growing human health threat by 2030.
Tufts University has been at the forefront of scientific advancement in tick-borne disease research since Lyme disease was first described in the U.S. in the 1970s.
Notable contributions to the field by current and former Tufts University faculty, staff and students include involvement in:
- The first identification of Lyme disease
- The identification of Borrelia burgdorferi as the causative agent of Lyme disease
- Development of the only approved commercial human Lyme disease vaccine
- Development of multiple diagnostic tests for Lyme disease
- Early identification of additional tick borne diseases including Borrelia miyamotoi and deer tick virus.
Developing Tufts University’s unique expertise in the specialty of tick-borne disease remains a sustained focus for the University. Currently, Tufts University boasts one of the strongest groups of tick-borne disease researchers in world and its faculty are #1 in NIH research funding for Lyme disease over the last decade. The Tufts Lyme Disease Initiative seeks to engage students and faculty from different backgrounds to use their perspective to develop creative approaches to the problem of Lyme disease. By working together, we hope to finally turn the tide against Lyme disease.