Brain scans and blood tests for lingering neurologic symptoms after Lyme disease
Official title: Neuroimaging and blood markers in post treatment Lyme disease with persistent neurologic symptoms
Funded at Johns Hopkins University · NIH-11159491 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project uses brain imaging and blood tests to follow people treated for early Lyme disease who still have ongoing neurologic or cognitive symptoms over one year.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Johns Hopkins University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Baltimore, United States) |
| Project start | September 20, 2023 |
| Project end | August 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $533,288 |
| NIH project number | 5R01AI178774-03 |
| Project ID | NIH-11159491 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
People who were treated for early Lyme disease (for example with an erythema migrans rash), have completed antibiotic therapy, and continue to have neurologic or cognitive symptoms and can undergo MRI and blood draws are ideal candidates.
✕Less likely to help
People without ongoing neurologic symptoms after Lyme disease, or those who cannot have MRI scans (for example due to implants or severe claustrophobia), are unlikely to benefit from participation.
What this research studies
You would have brain functional MRIs and blood draws shortly after finishing antibiotics, then again at 6 months and 12 months, while researchers compare your results to healthy people without Lyme disease. The team will look specifically at changes in white matter activity on fMRI alongside blood markers to see how these relate to thinking problems and patient-reported recovery. The researchers hypothesize that some white matter changes may be an adaptive healing response that comes with cognitive cost, and they will track whether those changes predict better or worse outcomes over time.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this work could clarify why some people have lasting cognitive symptoms after Lyme disease and identify brain or blood markers that predict recovery.
How similar studies have gone: Previous studies, including preliminary work from this group, have found white matter changes and cognitive differences in post-treatment Lyme disease, but combining longitudinal fMRI with blood markers in the same patients is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
-
Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Marvel, Cherie L — Johns Hopkins University
- Study coordinator: Marvel, Cherie L
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
Understanding why some people have ongoing symptoms after Lyme disease
A long-term study follows people diagnosed with acute Lyme disease to see who develops persistent symptoms and why, with care from a team of Lyme experts.
-
CSF Protein Map in Post-Treatment Lyme Disease
A short study to map proteins in spinal fluid of people who had Lyme disease and still feel sick after standard treatment, to understand what’s going on.
-
Lyme disease vaccine research aimed at preventing infection
Researchers are developing a Lyme disease vaccine by studying how the immune system responds to Borrelia burgdorferi and testing vaccine approaches to prevent illness.
-
Lyme disease brain health: tracking brain signals and blood clues after treatment
This study follows people with early Lyme disease and compares them to healthy volunteers to see how the brain and blood markers change over a year after starting antibiotics.
-
Lyme disease symptoms lingering after treatment may be driven by special bacterial fragments
A human-friendly look at a study exploring why some Lyme patients keep symptoms after antibiotics and whether tiny fragments from the bacteria are to blame.
-
Understanding Lyme disease immune signals to predict recovery after antibiotics
A research project at MIT aims to find immune biomarkers that tell which Lyme patients will recover after standard antibiotics and who might have lasting symptoms.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.