Holiday weekend reading (and a reminder about ticks)

As we head into the holiday weekend, a reminder about tick season and what biotech’s doing about it—plus, some long weekend reads. Good Day BIO will resume publication on Monday, July 10 (but we’ll check in if there’s breaking news). Happy July 4th!  (504 words, 2 minutes, 31 seconds)

A ticking time bomb

This year’s mosquito and tick season looks bad, but biotech is developing new solutions.

The news: 2023 could see a “severe” tick and mosquito season, reports NBC News, with the first locally transmitted malaria cases in the U.S. in 20 years and mosquito and tick populations expanding to cities as temperatures rise.

Case in point: “For decades, the main public health threat from ticks in New York has been Lyme disease, transmitted by the blacklegged tick, often called the ‘deer tick,’” reports The New York Times. “But new tick-borne pathogens—with names like Bourbon and Heartland virus—have been detected in New York State in recent years, and rare tick-borne illnesses like babesiosis are infecting more people year by year. Other tick species are also becoming more prevalent; new species have established themselves in the Bronx and Staten Island.”

New remedies could be here soon—like Pfizer and Valneva’s Lyme disease vaccine, which is currently in Phase 3 clinical trial, as well as biobased insect repellent.

And scientists have discovered how to gene edit the blacklegged tick’s embryo—which could limit the growth of tick populations and perhaps stop disease at the source.

What you can do now: New York State’s health department recommends completing a full body check for ticks “multiple times per day” if you’re spending time outdoors.  

More reading: Ticking time bomb: What you need to know about Lyme disease prevention

Holiday weekend reading

Here are a few stories you might have missed—plus a podcast episode to revisit—if you’re lounging on the beach (or stuck in an airport) this weekend.

‘Reality isn’t negotiable’
That’s the headline of the latest analysis from former FDA Associate Commissioner Peter J. Pitts, who explains why price controls in the Inflation Reduction Act will disincentivize R&D in the U.S.—and, in fact, won’t lower costs for the vast majority of Medicare beneficiaries. 

Why a vaccine patch could be a game changer
More than 1.5 million people globally die each year from diseases for which there is a safe and effective vaccine. Three main reasons why? Vaccines are inaccessible, people have needle phobia, or people are just too busy to prioritize a trip to a clinic or pharmacy. Michael Schrader, CEO and co-founder of BIO member Vaxess, explains why a vaccine patch could be a game changer.

CRISPR celebrates 11 years
This week marked 11 years since the publication of Drs. Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer Doudna’s landmark paper describing the discovery of CRISPR Cas9—a good time to listen to the I am BIO Podcast episode on how the CRISPR revolution is just starting. 

Women kickstarted the gene-editing revolution – where are they now?
Speaking of women in gene editing, one of our favorite panels at the BIO International Convention featured three women executives talking about everything from why gene editing is a “paradigm shift” to how we can help mentor future women in the industry. Read the recap and catch our interviews with two women in the field.

President Biden’s Friday: Heading to Camp David for the weekend.

What’s Happening on Capitol Hill: The House and Senate are in recess through July 7.