Most Viral Host Ranges Are Narrow. The fact that the host range â the group of cell types that a virus can infect â is generally restricted serves as a basis for classifying viruses. A virus that infects only bacteria is called a bacteriophage, or simply a phage.
In 1981, a scientist who was studying Rocky Mountain Spotted Fever (also caused by a tick bite) began to study Lyme disease. This scientist, Willy Burgdorfer, found the connection between the deer tick and the disease. He discovered that a bacterium called a spirochete, carried by ticks, was causing Lyme.The medical community honored Dr. Burgdorferâs discovery in 1982 by naming the spirochete Borrelia burgdorferi.istory of Lyme Disease. Ticks and Lyme disease have been around for thousands of years. In fact, a recent autopsy on a 5,300-year-old mummy indicated the presence of the bacteria which causes Lyme disease.
The virus was first discovered in 1964 when Sir Michael Anthony Epstein and Ms. Yvonne Barr found it in a Burkitt lymphoma cell line. In 1968, the virus was linked to the disease infectious mononucleosis. Infection with Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) is common and usually occurs in childhood or early adulthood.