Breaking into a cold sweat over a tick bite may have its benefits.
A protein found in human sweat could offer some protection against Borrelia burgdorferi, a tick-transmitted bacterium that causes Lyme disease, researchers report March 19 in Nature Communications. In lab dishes and mice, the protein curbed bacterial growth. But some people have a mutated version of the protein that doesn’t work as well, perhaps putting them at higher risk of becoming infected.
“When we talk about risk factors for [contracting] Lyme, we generally talk about camping, golfing, maybe gardening,” says MIT immunologist Michal Tal. But sweaty activities like trail running aren’t typically on the list. “It’s never
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