A newly published study in Communications Biology is turning heads—and it may help us understand one of the most complex and frustrating parts of chronic tick-borne illness: why some infections persist after treatment.

The study uncovered how a blood-borne parasite—Trypanosoma congolense—attaches to the lining of blood vessels to avoid being cleared by the immune system. While T. congolense is an animal parasite, the biological mechanisms uncovered in this research could apply to Babesia, a tick-borne parasite that infects humans and is often found alongside Lyme disease.

Why Babesia Deserves the Spotlight

Babesia is a protozoan parasite that invades and destroys red blood cells, similar to malaria. It’s transmitted to humans primarily through tick bites, making it one of the most common Lyme co-infections.

Some people clear Babesia quickly. Others—especially those who are immunocompromised or coinfected—experience chronic symptoms that linger for months or years, including:

• Fatigue

• Shortness of breath

• Air hunger

• Sweating and chills

• Neurological issues

So why does Babesia persist in some people?

That’s where this new study may offer answers.

The Science: Sequestration in Blood Vessels

In the study, researchers used 3D bioengineered blood vessel models to observe how T. congolense behaves in a mammalian host. They found that the parasite:

• Sequesters (attaches) to the endothelial lining of blood vessels

• Uses a signaling molecule called cAMP to anchor itself

• Proliferates more rapidly when attached

• Evades immune detection, as the body may not recognize it as foreign while it hides on the vessel wall

They even found that by disrupting cAMP signaling, the parasites detached from the vessel wall and stopped multiplying.

“In other parasitic diseases, such as malaria and babesiosis, sequestration also determines clinical course, disease severity, and organ pathology.”
— Porqueddu et al., Communications Biology, 2025

Babesia is directly mentioned in this context—making this one of the first studies to suggest a potential model for how Babesia may hide in the body.

A New Way to Understand Persistent Babesia Infections

If Babesia uses similar vascular hiding tactics, it would help explain:

• Why it can be so hard to detect in blood tests

• Why some people improve with anti-parasitic treatment, only to relapse

• Why immune-based therapies (e.g., herbs, immunomodulators) sometimes help more than antibiotics alone

This research suggests that chronic Babesia may not be about antibiotic resistance, but rather about location: the parasite may be tucked away in blood vessel walls, invisible to both the immune system and conventional treatments.

What About Lyme Disease?

Although Lyme (Borrelia burgdorferi) is a bacterium, not a parasite, chronic Lyme patients experience many of the same challenges: persistent symptoms despite treatment, fluctuating illness, and immune system confusion.

Borrelia has already been shown to form biofilms, evade the immune system, and cause vascular inflammation. Could vascular sequestration be another tool in its survival kit?

It’s possible—and this new study gives researchers a model to investigate further.

Final Thoughts: Hope for the Future of Tick-Borne Disease Treatment

This research doesn’t solve Babesia or Lyme—but it offers a crucial new lens: a way of seeing how chronic tick-borne infections may persist by hiding in the vasculature.

More importantly, it points toward actionable strategies, like:

• Disrupting pathogen attachment

• Enhancing immune detection

• Preventing relapse by targeting hidden reservoirs

It’s early, but it’s hopeful. And for those living with chronic tick-borne illness, hope is everything.

🧠 Keep learning. Keep advocating. Healing is possible.

📖 Read the full study here:
👉 Bioengineered 3D microvessels reveal mechanisms of Trypanosoma congolense sequestration