Media report UMaine Extension offering tick-borne disease testing

The Piscataquis ObserverPenobscot Bay Pilot and Z107.3 reported University of Maine Cooperative Extension is accepting tick samples for tick-borne disease testing at the new UMaine Extension Diagnostic and Research Laboratory in Orono. Maine residents can submit ticks for testing for the most common tick-borne diseases —Lyme disease, anaplasmosis and babesiosis — for $15 per sample; species identification of samples continues to be free. The tick identification and testing program will allow researchers to track the spread of ticks and associated diseases in the state, and survey for new species and pathogens. More information and instructions on submitting a tick are available online; by calling 581.3880, or 800.287.0279 (in Maine); or by emailing tickID@maine.edu.