Lyme Disease Research

"Optimization and Standardization of the Suppression of Host-Seeking Ixodes scapularis Abundances and Interruption of Pathogen Transmission Through Orally Delivered Systemic Acaricide Treatment of White-tailed Deer and Peromyscus spp.," Connecticut, Maine, and Rhode Island (Active)

A collaborative effort between White Buffalo Inc. and the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station to evaluate the efficacy of orally delivered systemic acaricide treatment of white-tailed deer and white-footed mice in suppressing Ixodes scapularis abundances and interrupting tick-borne pathogen transmission in high-risk residential communities across the Northeast. Research is currently underway at three sites with varying mammalian host diversity in southern Connecticut, Isle au Haut, Maine, and Block Island, Rhode Island, to assess reproducibility across different ecological settings and to develop standardized operating procedures for homeowners and vector control professionals. Funding provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

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"Field Evaluation of an Orally Delivered Fipronil-Based Acaricide Targeting White-tailed Deer for Control of Ixodes scapularis and Amblyomma americanum," Bridgeport and Norwalk, Connecticut (Active)

A collaborative field trial led by Genesis Laboratories, Inc., in partnership with the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station (CAES) and White Buffalo Inc., evaluating the efficacy of a novel fipronil-laced oral deer feed in suppressing blacklegged tick (Ixodes scapularis) and lone star tick (Amblyomma americanum) burdens on wild white-tailed deer across two sites in Connecticut. This study is currently active, with White Buffalo Inc. responsible for tracking, darting, and immobilizing deer for data collection, supporting a two-year effort designed to generate food-safety and efficacy data for eventual FDA approval of the first commercially available oral acaricide targeting deer as a key tick reproductive host. Funding provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

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"An Integrated and Individual Tick Management Program to Reduce Risk of Lyme Disease in a Residential Endemic Area," Redding, Connecticut: A collaborative effort between White Buffalo Inc., and the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station to evaluate whether localized deer population reductions can reduce Ixodes tick abundance and subsequent risk of Lyme disease. Funding provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

 

"Control of the tick, Ixodes scapularis Say, on white-tailed deer at a suburban Lyme disease focus," Old Lyme, Connecticut
A collaborative effort between White Buffalo Inc., the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, Yale University, and the United States Department of Agriculture-Agricultural Research Service to evaluate a four-poster feeder system to control deer ticks on free-ranging white-tailed deer in a suburban community. Funding provided by the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA).

 

"Control of the tick, Ixodes scapularis Say, on white-tailed deer at an urban Lyme disease focus," Bridgeport, Connecticut
A collaborative effort between White Buffalo Inc., and the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station to evaluate an experimental Amitraz-impregnated collar to control ticks on an enclosed white-tailed deer population. Funding provided by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).

 

"Control of the tick, Ixodes scapularis Say, on white-tailed deer at an urban Lyme disease focus," Bridgeport, Connecticut
A collaborative effort between White Buffalo Inc., and the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station to evaluate a four-poster feeder system to control deer ticks on an enclosed white-tailed deer population. Funding provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).