Beard, Ben
Ben Beard, PhD
Chief, Bacterial Diseases Branch, Division of Vector-Borne Diseases, NCEZID
Associate Director for Climate Change, NCEZID
Charles Benjamin (Ben) Beard, PhD, is the Chief of the Bacterial Diseases Branch at the Division of Vector-Borne Diseases within the National Center for Emerging and Zoonotic Infecious Diseases (NCEZID) and coordinates CDC's national programs on Lyme disease, plague, and tularemia.
He also serves as the Associate Director for Climate Change at NCEZID. Dr. Beard is involved in coordinating CDC's work in understanding and mitigating the potential impact of climate variability and change on infectious disease ecology.
During his tenure at CDC, Ben has worked mostly in tropical medicine and international health. In 1991, he joined the Division of Parasitic Diseases at CDC, where he conducted applied research on the prevention and control of malaria and Chagas disease, and studied the epidemiology of Pneumocystis pneumonia in persons with AIDS. From 1999 to 2003 he served as Chief of the Vector Genetics Section in the Entomology Branch of the Division of Parasitic Diseases before joining CDC's Division of Vector-borne Infectious Diseases in Fort Collins, CO, in 2003.
He earned a B.S. in 1980 at Auburn University, a M.S. in 1983 at the Louisiana State University School of Medicine, and a Ph.D. in 1987 at the University of Florida. He served as a post-doctoral fellow and as an associate research scientist at Yale University School of Medicine from 1987 to 1991.
He has published over 100 scientific papers, books, and book chapters collectively, and has served on a variety of committees and panels both inside and outside of CDC. He is currently an Associate Editor for Emerging Infectious Diseases and past president of the Society for Vector Ecology.
To request an interview, call CDC's Division of News and Electronic Media at (404) 639-3286, or e-mail us at media@cdc.gov.
Article here- http://www.cdc.gov/media/subtopic/sme/beard.html
Charles Ben Beard came to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) in 1991 to the Division of Parasitic Diseases. He was Chief of the Vector Genetics Section there before joining the Division of Vector-borne Infectious Diseases in Fort Collins, as Chief of the Bacterial Zoonoses Branch.
Dr. Beard has served on numerous committees and panels inside CDC, in environmental microbiology and bioterrorism, recombinant DNA research, and research with human participants. He has also served on special panels for the World Heath Organization and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and has published extensively in the areas of vector biology and control and molecular epidemiology.
Article located here:
http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/eid/about/editors.htm
Nat Cap Lyme & Ben Beard
https://natcaplyme.org/category/news/page/3/
~ ~ ~ Meet Mr. Suck-Up ~ ~ ~
QUOTE- "We are also grateful for the opportunity to expand the public dialogue around these important issues through informed discussion with leaders like Dr. Beard. Thank you!"
Bay Area Lyme Foundation
http://www.bayarealyme.org/blog/cdc-talk/
LDA & Ben Beard
https://www.lymediseaseassociation.org/faculty-biographies/1524-c-ben-beard-md-phd
"If you have not met Ben Beard before, he is both engaging and likable and has a measured tone."
LymeDisease.org & Ben Beard
https://www.lymedisease.org/662/
North Carolina Departrnent of Health and Human Services
Division of Public Health * Epidemiology Section
1902 Mail Service Center * Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-l902
Tel 919-733-3421 * Fax 919-733-0195
Michael F. Easley, Governor
Carmen Hooker Odom, Secretary
August 19, 2005
Mr. Curt Ellis
North Carolina Board of Medical Examiners
Via facsimile 326-1130
Dear Mr. Ellis:
Attached to this letter is a letter and associated documentation from Dr. C. Ben Beard of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. I asked the CDC to provide this letter and documentation following a telephone conversation initiated by the CDC to my office over their concerns regarding the practice of the Jemsek Clinic in Huntersville, NC. Apparently patients are seen from around the country at this clinic for specialized care for Lyme Disease.
My office is responsible for the reporting, surveillance, and control of communicable diseases in North Carolina, including Lyme Disease which is a mandatory physician reported illness in the state (l0A NCAC 4lA .0101). The CDC documents provided areconcerning to the public health as they indicate:
l. Misinformation to patients on the sexual and vertical transmission of Lyme Disease,
2. Reports of prolonged parenteral antibiotic administration, and
3. Use of blood and urine tests that are not considered standard of care.
Because these patients were seen from out of state, it is difficult for my oflice to trace these activities, Only a federal agency such as the CDC could collect these data.
Thank you for your attention to this matter and please let me know if I can be of further assistance.
Sincerely,
Jeffery Engel, M.D.
State Epidemiologist and Head, General Communicable Disease Control
cc Mr. Chris Hoke, Chief, Legal and Regulatory Affairs, Division of Public Health
Location: 225 North McDowell Street * Cooper Building * Raleigh, N.C. 27603
Ben Recommends
J Med Entomol. 2005 May;42(3):506-10.
Differential infectivity of the Lyme disease spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi derived from Ixodes scapularis salivary glands and midgut.
Lima CM, Zeidner NS, Beard CB, Soares CA, Dolan MC, Dietrich G, Piesman J.
Source
Division of Vector-Borne Infectious Diseases, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Fort Collins, CO 80522, USA.
Abstract
Blood fed nymphal Ixodes scapularis Say infected with Borrelia burgdorferi were dissected to obtain salivary gland and midgut extracts. Extracts were inoculated into C3H/HeJ mice, and ear, heart, and bladder were cultured to determine comparative infectivity. Aliquots of extracts were then analyzed by quantitative polymerase chain reaction to determine the number of spirochetes inoculated into mice. A comparative median infectious dose (ID50) was determined for both salivary gland and midgut extract inoculations. Our data demonstrated a statistically significant difference (P < 0.002) in the ID50 derived from salivary gland (average = 18) versus midgut (average = 251) extracts needed to infect susceptible mice. A rationale for the differential infectivity of salivary and midgut derived spirochetes is discussed.
PMID:
15962807
[PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
Insect Mol Biol. 2005 Aug;14(4):443-52.
Capillary feeding of specific dsRNA induces silencing of the isac gene in nymphal Ixodes scapularis ticks.
Soares CA, Lima CM, Dolan MC, Piesman J, Beard CB, Zeidner NS.
Source
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Division of Vector-Borne Infectious Diseases, Bacterial Zoonoses Branch, Foothills Campus, Fort Collins, CO 80522, USA.
Abstract
Ixodes scapularis transmits several pathogens including Borrelia burgdorferi. Bioactive compounds in tick saliva support tick feeding and influence pathogen transmission to the mammalian host. These studies utilized oral delivery of dsRNA to silence an anticomplement gene (isac) in I. scapularis nymphs. Silencing of isac significantly reduced fed-tick weight compared to delivery of control lacZ dsRNA, and immunoblots specific for FlaB protein indicated a reduction in spirochete load in isac-silenced infected nymphs. SDS-PAGE demonstrated that isac gene silencing affected expression of a number of salivary and non-salivary gland proteins in ticks. Finally, multiple isac cDNA homologues were cloned, and these may represent a new gene family coexpressed during tick feeding. This work presents a novel oral delivery approach for specific gene silencing in I. scapularis nymphs and characterizes the effect of isac on blood-feeding in an attempt to block transmission of B. burgdorferi.
PMID:
16033437
[PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]
North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services
Division of Public Health Epidemiology Section
1902 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-l902
Tel 919-733-3421 Fax 919-733-0195
Michael F. Easley, Governor Carmen Hooker Odom, Secretary
August 19, 2005
Mr. Curt Ellis
North Carolina Board of Medical Examiners
Via facsimile 326-1130
Dear Mr. Ellis:
Attached to this letter is a letter and associated documentation from Dr. C. Ben Beard of
the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. I asked the CDC to provide this letter and
documentation following a telephone conversation initiated by the CDC to my office over their
concerns regarding the practice of the Jemsek Clinic in Huntsrsville, NC. Apparently patients
are seen from around the country at this clinic for specialized care for Lyme Disease.
My office is responsible for the reporting, surveillance, and control of communicable
diseases in North Carolina, including Lyme Disease which is a mandatory physician reported
illness in the state (l0A NCAC 4lA .0101). The CDC documents provided are concerning to the
public health as they indicate:
l. Misinformation to patients on the sexual and vertical transmission of Lyme Disease,
2. Reports of prolonged parenteral antibiotic administration, and
3. Use of blood and urine tests that are not considered standard of care.
Because these patients were seen from out of state, it is difficult for my office to trace
these activities. Only a federal agency such as the CDC could collect these data.
Thank you for your attention to this matter and please let me know if I can be of further
assistance.
Jeffrey Engel, M.D.
State Epidemiologist and Head, General Communicable Disease Control
cc Mr, Chris Hoke, Chief, Legal and Regulatory Affairs, Division of Public Health
Location 225 North McDowell Street Cooper Building Raleigh, N. C. 27603 An Equal Opportunity Employer
Clin Infect Dis. 2011 Feb;52 Suppl 3:s247-52.
The Lyme disease vaccine--a public health perspective.
Source
Department of Health and Human Services, Washington, DC, USA.
Abstract
Lyme disease, which is caused by the spirochetal agent Borrelia burgdoferi, is the most common vector-borne illness in the United States. In 1998, the US Food and Drug Administration approved a recombinant Lyme disease vaccine that was later voluntarily withdrawn from the market by the manufacturer. Current Lyme disease prevention efforts focus on a combination of methods and approaches, including area acaricides, landscape management, host-targeted interventions, management of deer populations, and personal protective measures, such as the use of insect repellant and tick checks.
Although these methods are generally safe and relatively inexpensive, the primary limitations of these methods are that their effectiveness has been difficult to demonstrate conclusively and that rates of compliance are generally poor. An effective human Lyme disease vaccine that has been adequately evaluated in the highest-risk population groups could be very beneficial in preventing Lyme disease; however, it would need to meet high standards regarding safety, efficacy, cost, and public acceptance.
PMID:
21217171
[PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]