This paper characterizes the actual science performance of the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), as determined from the six month commissioning period. We summarize the performance of the spacecraft, telescope, science instruments, and ground system, with an emphasis on differences from pre-launch expectations. Commissioning has made clear that JWST is fully capable of achieving the discoveries for which it was built. Moreover, almost across the board, the science performance of JWST is better than expected; in most cases, JWST will go deeper faster than expected. The telescope and instrument suite have demonstrated the sensitivity, stability, image quality, and spectral range that are necessary to transform our understanding of the cosmos through observations spanning from near-earth asteroids to the most distant galaxies.

Geographic distribution of Rickettsia parkeri in its US tick vector, Amblyomma maculatum, was evaluated by PCR. R. parkeri was detected in ticks from Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, Oklahoma, and South Carolina, which suggests that A. maculatum may be responsible for additional cases of R. parkeri rickettsiosis throughout much of its US range.

The aim of this study was to determine the cause of illness in several human patients residing in Florida and Georgia, USA, with suspected Lyme disease based upon EM-like skin lesions and/or symptoms consistent with early localized or late disseminated Lyme borreliosis. Using polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays developed specifically for Lyme group Borrelia spp., followed by DNA sequencing for confirmation, we identified Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato DNA in samples of blood and skin and also in lone star ticks (Amblyomma americanum) removed from several patients who either live in or were exposed to ticks in Florida or Georgia. This is the first report to present combined PCR and DNA sequence evidence of infection with Lyme Borrelia spp. in human patients in the southern U.S., and to demonstrate that several B. burgdorferi sensu lato species may be associated with Lyme disease-like signs and symptoms in southern states. Based on the findings of this study, we suggest that human Lyme borreliosis occurs in Florida and Georgia, and that some cases of Lyme-like illness referred to as southern tick associated rash illness (STARI) in the southern U.S. may be attributable to previously undetected B. burgdorferi sensu lato infections.

Lyme borreliosis, or Lyme disease (LD), is a tick-borne zoonotic infection of biomedical significance, caused by Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato (s.l.) spirochetes and transmitted by Ixodes species ticks. It usually circulates among wildlife vertebrate reservoirs and vector ticks but may infect humans, causing multisystem problems. In far western and northern North America, the host reservoirs, tick vectors, and genospecies of Borrelia are well known but not so in the southern U.S., where there is controversy as to the presence of ''true'' LD. Here we report the presence of the LD spirochete B. burgdorferi sensu stricto (s.s.) and Borrelia bissettii, three main reservoir hosts, and two enzootic tick vectors in the southeastern U.S. The two enzootic tick vectors, Ixodes affinis and Ixodes minor, rarely bite humans but are more important than the human biting ''bridge'' vector, Ixodes scapularis, in maintaining the enzootic spirochete cycle in nature. We also report extraordinary longevities and infections in the reservoir rodents Peromyscus gossypinus, Sigmodon hispidus, and Neotoma floridana.L yme borreliosis (LB) is an infection of public health importance with endemic foci in North America and Eurasia. It is the most common vector-borne infectious disease in the U.S. (1) and Europe (2). The disease may affect the skin, joints, and cardiovascular and nervous systems. It may range from severe to mild or even asymptomatic and may become chronic if not treated promptly. The causative agent of Lyme disease (LD) is a spirochete, Borrelia burgdorferi sensu lato (s.l.), which is transmitted primarily by Ixodes spp. ticks (3). LB is a zoonosis in which humans and domestic animals are incidental to its usual wildlife reservoir hosts (4). The primary reservoir hosts in hyperendemic foci of the spirochete in the northeastern and north central U.S. are species of Peromyscus mice (5), although several other mammalian and avian species are reservoir-competent to various degrees and can be important locally throughout the U.S. (6) and globally (7). It is important to identify the main reservoir host species in each particular geographic area, because the vertebrate species composition may affect local B. burgdorferi abundance in nature. It is also important to identify the main local vector tick species responsible for transmission of the spirochete to humans and the tick enzootic vectors, as well as the local genospecies of B. burgdorferi s.l.At least 11 genospecies comprise the B. burgdorferi s.l. complex worldwide, and three of these occur in the southeastern U.S.: Borrelia andersonii, Borrelia bissettii, and B. burgdorferi sensu stricto (s.s.) (8, 9). Of the 11 genospecies described globally, only three have been confirmed to have been cultured from humans: B. burgdorferi s.s. (North America and western Europe), Borrelia garinii, and Borrelia afzelii (Europe and Asia). Additionally, B. bissettii was reportedly cultured from several patients in Slovenia (10), but this has yet to be confirmed.In North America, two tick spec...