The US House of Representatives has ordered an investigation into whether the Pentagon attempted to use ticks and other insects as biological weapons.

The amendment, which passed through the house last Thursday, would require the Government to admit whether it "experimented with ticks and other insects regarding use as a biological weapon between the years of 1950 and 1975."

The Government would also be required to outline the scope of any investigation and whether any insects were "released outside of any laboratory by accident or experimental design."

The amendment was tabled by New Jersey Republican Chris Smith who said he was inspired to act by a number of books and articles claiming that " significant research had been done at US government facilities… to turn ticks and other insects into bioweapons."

Rep Smith has been advocating for an increase in funding for the fight against Lyme disease and other tick-borne diseases.

He said there has been an 'explosion' in Lyme Disease diagnoses in recent decades, "with an estimated 300,000 to 437,000 new cases diagnosed each year and 10% to 20% of all patients suffering from chronic symptoms.

During the debate he said a new book on the subject includes  interviews with the scientist credited with discovering Lyme disease, Dr Willy Burgdorfer.

He said the book reveals that Dr Burgdorfer was a bioweapons specialist and suggests that there were US programmes aimed at infecting ticks with pathogens to "cause severe disability, disease - even death - to potential enemies."

"Americans have a right to know whether any of this is true," he said.

"If true, what were the parameters of the program? Who ordered it?

"And have these experiments caused Lyme disease and other tick-borne disease to mutate and to spread?"

"My amendment tasks the DoD inspector general to ask the hard questions and report back. The millions of people suffering from Lyme and other tick-borne diseases deserve to know the truth."

The amendment was added to a defence spending bill; however, it will have to be passed by the  Senate to move forward.

Rep Smith has also authored and introduced the TICK Act which authorises an extra $180m in funding for Lyme research, prevention and treatment programs.