Which tick is the vector for Lyme disease?

Which tick is the vector for Lyme disease?

• A. Blacklegged (deer) tick
• B. American dog tick
• C. Lone star tick
• D. Dermacentor variabilis

Answer: (A)

Lyme disease is transmitted primarily by ticks of the Ixodes genus, with the blacklegged tick (also called the deer tick) being the main vector in many areas. Borrelia burgdorferi, the bacterium that causes Lyme, lives in the tick and is passed to humans during feeding after the tick has attached for enough time. The risk is highest from the nymphal stage, which is small and often goes unnoticed, allowing longer attachment and greater chance of transmission. The American dog tick, Dermacentor variabilis, is known for transmitting other diseases (like Rocky Mountain spotted fever) and not Lyme. The Lone star tick is associated with ehrlichial infections and other conditions rather than Lyme disease as the primary vector. So, the tick that spreads Lyme disease is the blacklegged (deer) tick.

Lyme disease is transmitted primarily by ticks of the Ixodes genus, with the blacklegged tick (also called the deer tick) being the main vector in many areas. Borrelia burgdorferi, the bacterium that causes Lyme, lives in the tick and is passed to humans during feeding after the tick has attached for enough time. The risk is highest from the nymphal stage, which is small and often goes unnoticed, allowing longer attachment and greater chance of transmission.

The American dog tick, Dermacentor variabilis, is known for transmitting other diseases (like Rocky Mountain spotted fever) and not Lyme. The Lone star tick is associated with ehrlichial infections and other conditions rather than Lyme disease as the primary vector. So, the tick that spreads Lyme disease is the blacklegged (deer) tick.