WYNNEWOOD, PA — A researcher with Main Line Health has secured a U.S. patent for protein fragments that could be used to both detect and prevent Lyme disease, offering hope against a growing public health threat that now affects nearly half a million Americans annually.
The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office granted U.S. Patent No. 12,364,744 B2 to Dr. Sunil Thomas, a research professor at the Lankenau Institute for Medical Research, part of Main Line Health. His work focuses on protein fragments derived from Borrelia burgdorferi, the bacteria that causes Lyme disease. These fragments, known as immunogenic peptides, can stimulate immune responses that may be harnessed for both blood testing and vaccine development.
“I turned my attention to Lyme disease because the health threat’s prevalence is worsening,” Dr. Thomas said. Once largely confined to the Northeast, Lyme cases are now being reported across the United States, Europe, and Asia. Climate change has also extended the active season for ticks, making exposure possible even during winter months.
Lyme disease is transmitted through tick bites and can cause fever, fatigue, joint stiffness, and a distinctive bull’s-eye rash. If untreated, the illness can lead to severe complications affecting the nervous system, joints, and heart.
Dr. Thomas’ team identified six protein fragments that triggered strong immune responses in blood samples tested at Lankenau Medical Center. Four of those fragments also demonstrated significant protective effects in preclinical testing, suggesting they could form the basis of an effective vaccine.
Main Line Health officials see this work as critical progress. “Dr. Thomas’ formulations show the potential for the necessary superior results at a time when the disease’s spread is growing without any clinical tools available for its effective prevention,” said George Prendergast, PhD, president and CEO of Main Line Health.
While an earlier Lyme vaccine was withdrawn from the market years ago, Dr. Thomas’ research could provide the foundation for a more effective alternative. His career includes a series of innovations in diagnostic and therapeutic development, including work modeling proteins of the SARS-CoV-2 virus during the COVID-19 pandemic.
With Lyme disease cases rising nationwide and globally, Main Line Health leaders say the newly patented tools represent a significant step toward both improved diagnostics and the long-awaited prospect of an effective vaccine.
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