Research grants

Seed funding for tick-borne disease research

Stichting Tekenbeetziekten (Tick-borne diseases Foundation Netherlands) supports independent, innovative research into tick-borne diseases. Because large-scale studies require substantial funding, we provide seed grants that enable researchers to generate preliminary evidence, test promising approaches and prepare larger follow-up studies.

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Theme 1: Immune system suppression by Borrelia

• Background: Borrelia utilises various advanced strategies to prevent detection and clearance by the human immune system. There is a major knowledge gap surrounding the in vivo mechanisms in patients, particularly in cases of long-term symptom progression or the absence of a classic IgM/IgG profile.
• Key questions:
  • Which immunological signature characterises these patients where Borrelia persists long-term?
  • Which mechanisms (such as complement evasion or hiding in macrophages) are demonstrable in primary cells or blood of patients?
  • How do these markers relate to clinical subgroups to contribute to an improved case definition?
• Expected outcomes: An immunological biomarker panel for patient subtyping and potential entry points for therapeutic intervention.
• Preferred approaches: Pilot and exploratory studies, a multicentre design, and active patient participation linking the clinic to the laboratory.

Theme 2: Treatment research with antiviral agents in TBE

• Background: Currently, no evidence-based treatment exists for Tick-Borne Encephalitis (TBE). The Dutch guideline provides no therapeutic advice, and the international situation is comparable. Given the rise of TBE in the Netherlands and border regions, new impulses are urgent.
• Key questions:
  • Which existing antiviral agents show potential in vitro or ex vivo against the TBE virus?
  • Can human tissue studies (e.g., post-mortem brain tissue from patients with TBE) lead to new therapeutic targets?
  • Which biomarkers predict severity and recovery in TBE?
• Expected outcomes: Proof-of-concept data for antiviral strategies and a well-founded rationale for a future phase I/II study.
• Available funding: For 2026, € 10,000,- in seed funding is already available for an exploratory study.

Theme 3: Ecological interventions to reduce tick pressure

• Background: Tick pressure in the Netherlands has risen sharply in recent years. Ecological interventions through landscape, nature, and forest management, combined with natural tick and host-targeted control methods, may contribute to a sustainable reduction of tick abundance and human exposure while supporting biodiversity and ecosystem resilience.
• Key questions:
  • Which landscape, nature, and forest management measures most effectively reduce tick density and pathogen prevalence?
  • Which natural tick and host-targeted control methods are effective, safe, scalable and economically feasible?
  • How can tick-risk reduction be integrated into nature-inclusive landscape management and biodiversity policies?
  • What are the potential ecological risks and unintended consequences of these interventions?
• Expected outcomes: An ecological impact assessment of management interventions, model-based predictions of tick pressure under different scenarios, and/or an overview of evidence-based policy recommendations for provinces, nature managers, and the national government.