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Red-meat allergy-causing Lone Star tick migrating north
 
By JORDAN STRICKLER
Kentucky Correspondent
 
LEXINGTON, Ky. — There is a new concern within the medical community, one which could give meat lovers a new reason to avoid ticks.
 
The Lone Star tick, named for the lone white dot on the female’s back, can cause a severe reaction after consuming red meat and can produce a possible lifetime allergy to products such as beef, pork and lamb.

Once inflicted with the condition, an allergic reaction can develop in people after a single bite of red meat, causing hives, painful stomach cramps, shortness of breath, sneezing, headaches and, in some cases, death.

The difference between this allergy and others is that reactions from Lone Star tick bites might not occur for hours after eating, causing it to be difficult to diagnose.

“Given the delayed presentation, this allergy is often missed,” said Dr. David Stukus, an associate professor of Pediatrics, Section of Allergy and Immunology, at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. “Adults are most often affected, and this can occur suddenly in people who have eaten red meat their entire lives.

“It remains unknown how many people have alpha-gal allergy or are at risk for red meat allergy, but most estimates are low, around 1 to 2 percent of adults. At this time, this almost exclusively affects people living in the southern U.S., but given the northward migration of the Lone Star tick, this will likely change.”

A study published in the Journal of Allergy and Clinical Immunology from the University of Virginia Health System on the red meat allergy showed that more than 80 percent of patients in the study reported being bitten by ticks before showing symptoms.

The team who published the study concluded the specific cause of this has to do with the increased production of alpha-gal antibodies. The antibodies – which reports show grow with a 20-fold increase in tick-bite patients – trigger a massive release of histamines whenever red meat is eaten, causing the allergic effects.

Alpha-Gal is short for Galactose-alpha-1,3-galactose and is a carbohydrate molecule found in mammalian meats. The Lone Star tick, once relegated to the southern U.S., is making its way north.

“We are seeing an increase of places where animals didn’t used to be before,” said Larry Dapsis, entomologist and deer tick project coordinator for the Cape Cod Cooperative Extension in Barnstable, Mass. “Ticks are moving northward and this allergy is really only just becoming known in the medical community.

“With the reintroduction and increased populations of whitetail deer in many areas of the eastern United States, the ticks may further expand their range through transportation while feeding on whitetail deer, which is a key host,” noted Dapsis.

Wild turkey populations also are a common host and may contribute to tick expansion. In some Midwest states the Lone Star tick is colloquially known as the “turkey tick” due to its association with wild turkeys. Once thought to be confined to the South, the allergy is now cropping up in places like northern Minnesota and Maine and has begun migrating westward, with reports appearing in Kansas.

The National Pest Assoc. stated that 2017 might be the worst season yet for ticks, due in part to mild winter conditions that allowed them to thrive. The best way to avoid the allergen is to prevent bites, said Lee Townsend, an extension professor in the Department of Entomology for the University of Kentucky.

“People need to recognize where ticks are active and try and avoid those areas.  If they are in areas where ticks might be, they need to take proper precautions, such as insect spray or clothing with long sleeves and pants,” Townsend said. “You also need to examine yourself regularly. If you do see a tick on you, remove them with a sturdy device like tweezers and wash the area with soap and water, as it is an open wound.” 
 
Currently the disease is relegated to the Lone Star tick. “We are still learning why this is specific just to this tick,” said Dapsis. “The Lone Star tick could really be a game-changer.” 
7/20/2017