Thanks very much, Elizabeth, for bringing this forward to us. It's a growing problem, and a troubling one. I appreciate that you covered very well in your opening remarks about the need for prevention, for quick diagnosis, and then sharing best practices.
In terms of looking at the diagnostic tests, I've been trying to get a handle on this. We haven't had experts here to advise us. It's a little unusual to start a study without expert opinion in front of us.
But this ELISA test, this enzyme-linked immunosorbent test, is to detect antibodies. The Western blot test is also to identify antibodies reacting to certain proteins on the organism. As well, there is a polymerase chain reaction test.
It's a spirochete that we're talking about here, which causes other infections as well. This particular one is very problematic, tick-borne, but as you mentioned it also can be carried by dogs, white-footed mice, horses, and it may be that as ticks are moving around, other animals are carrying these ticks as well. We're in a farm area on the island. It may be that we have other animal vectors that we haven't been cluing in on.
I think we need to get a handle on best practices, and I appreciate that you've brought it forward for discussion. We need to find the appropriate diagnostic tests because the spirochete can be hiding in various tissues and toxins. It seems to be a bit of a masker and impairs, binding with other proteins in the tick, causing immunosuppression and delayed response. We need to get a better handle on exactly what the mechanisms are.
I hope we're all going to learn more as we work through the process and as we get the Lyme society speaking, and experts appearing before committee as we have a look at it.
Elizabeth, thank you for bringing it forward. I appreciate that we have an opportunity to learn something and to help advance the treatment of a troubling syndrome that's developing.