Molecular Targets to Impair Blood Meal Processing in Ticks

Kopáček, Petr; Perner, Jan; Sojka, Daniel; Šíma, Radek; Hajdušek, Ondřej

doi:10.1002/9783527802883.ch7

Cited by 6 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 112 publications

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“…In addition, dissemination rates were not significantly different between both time points. However, previous experiments showed that TBEV replication in ticks is enhanced by the blood meal 37 due to intake of warm blood and changes in biochemical processes in the tick after blood feeding 42 . The only mild increase of viral replication in our study might be attributed to the short incubation time of 14 days in comparison to natural infection, which lasts weeks to months.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

Tick populations from endemic and non-endemic areas in Germany show differential susceptibility to TBEV

Liebig

Boelke

Grund

et al. 2020

Sci Rep

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Tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV) is endemic in twenty-seven European countries, transmitted via the bite of an infected tick. TBEV is the causative agent of one of the most important viral diseases of the central nervous system (CNS). In Germany, 890 human cases were registered between the years 2018–2019. The castor bean tick, Ixodes ricinus, is the TBEV vector with the highest importance in Central Europe, including Germany. Despite the nationwide distribution of this tick species, risk areas of TBEV are largely located in Southern Germany. To increase our understanding of TBEV-tick interactions, we collected ticks from different areas within Germany (Haselmühl/Bavaria, Hanover/Lower Saxony) and infected them via an in vitro feeding system. A TBEV isolate was obtained from an endemic focus in Haselmühl. In two experimental series conducted in 2018 and 2019, ticks sampled in Haselmühl (TBEV focus) showed higher artificial feeding rates, as well as higher TBEV infections rates than ticks from the non-endemic area (Hanover). Other than the tick origin, year and month of the infection experiment as well as co-infection with Borrelia spp., had a significant impact on TBEV Haselmühl infection rates. Taken together, these findings suggest that a specific adaptation of the tick populations to their respective TBEV virus isolates or vice versa, leads to higher TBEV infection rates in those ticks. Furthermore, co-infection with other tick-borne pathogens such as Borrelia spp. can lower TBEV infection rates in specific populations.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

Tick populations from endemic and non-endemic areas in Germany show differential susceptibility to TBEV

Liebig

Boelke

Grund

et al. 2020

Sci Rep

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“…Excessive exposure to non-heme iron after hemoglobin digestion in midguts could be toxic to mites. Similar to the mechanisms in ticks ( 46 ), FERs are considered to play a role in iron homeostasis, although iron metabolism remains poorly understood in avian mites. According to a previous report, silencing of FER1 and FER2 affects feeding and oviposition in ticks, and FER2 depletion is linked to FER1 expression and altered iron homeostasis in ticks ( 31 ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Potential of ferritin 2 as an antigen for the development of a universal vaccine for avian mites, poultry red mites, tropical fowl mites, and northern fowl mites

et al. 2023

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IntroductionPoultry red mites (PRMs, Dermanyssus gallinae), blood-sucking ectoparasites, are a threat to the poultry industry because of reduced production caused by infestation. In addition, tropical fowl mites (TFMs, Ornithonyssus bursa) and northern fowl mites (NFMs, Ornithonyssus sylviarum) are hematophagous, distributed in various regions, genetically and morphologically close to PRMs, and cause similar problems to the poultry industry. Vaccine approaches have been studied for PRM control, and several molecules have been identified in PRMs as candidates for effective vaccine antigens. The development of an anti-PRM vaccine as a universal vaccine with broad efficacy against avian mites could improve the productivity of poultry farms worldwide. Molecules that are highly conserved among avian mites and have critical functions in the physiology and growth of mites could be ideal antigen candidates for the development of universal vaccines. Ferritin 2 (FER2), an iron-binding protein, is critical for the reproduction and survival of PRMs and has been reported as a useful vaccine antigen for the control of PRMs and a candidate for the universal vaccine antigen in some tick species.Method and resultsHerein, we identified and characterized FER2 in TFMs and NFM. Compared with the sequence of PRM, the ferroxidase centers of the heavy chain subunits were conserved in FER2 of TFMs and NFMs. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that FER2 belongs to clusters of secretory ferritins of mites and other arthropods. Recombinant FER2 (rFER2) proteins from PRMs, TFMs, and NFMs exhibited iron-binding abilities. Immunization with each rFER2 induced strong antibody responses in chickens, and each immune plasma cross-reacted with rFER2 from different mites. Moreover, mortality rates of PRMs fed with immune plasma against rFER2 from TFMs or NFMs, in addition to PRMs, were higher than those of control plasma.DiscussionrFER2 from each avian mite exhibited anti-PRM effects. This data suggests that it has the potential to be used as an antigen candidate for a universal vaccine against avian mites. Further studies are needed to access the usefulness of FER2 as a universal vaccine for the control of avian mites.

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“…This period is followed by a rapid engorgement phase lasting 12-24 h, which accounts for about two-thirds of the total blood volume ingested before detachment from the host. Most blood proteins are used for vitellogenesis and massive egg production during several weeks off-host [5,46]. The molecular mechanisms underlying the associated protein turnover and long-term blood meal storage in the tick gut lumen remain unexplored, mainly due to technical limitations in studying fully fed females.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Mialostatin, a Novel Midgut Cystatin from Ixodes ricinus Ticks: Crystal Structure and Regulation of Host Blood Digestion

Kotál

Buša

Urbanová

et al. 2021

IJMS

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The hard tick Ixodes ricinus is a vector of Lyme disease and tick-borne encephalitis. Host blood protein digestion, essential for tick development and reproduction, occurs in tick midgut digestive cells driven by cathepsin proteases. Little is known about the regulation of the digestive proteolytic machinery of I. ricinus. Here we characterize a novel cystatin-type protease inhibitor, mialostatin, from the I. ricinus midgut. Blood feeding rapidly induced mialostatin expression in the gut, which continued after tick detachment. Recombinant mialostatin inhibited a number of I. ricinus digestive cysteine cathepsins, with the greatest potency observed against cathepsin L isoforms, with which it co-localized in midgut digestive cells. The crystal structure of mialostatin was determined at 1.55 Å to explain its unique inhibitory specificity. Finally, mialostatin effectively blocked in vitro proteolysis of blood proteins by midgut cysteine cathepsins. Mialostatin is likely to be involved in the regulation of gut-associated proteolytic pathways, making midgut cystatins promising targets for tick control strategies.

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Molecular Targets to Impair Blood Meal Processing in Ticks

Cited by 6 publications

References 112 publications

Tick populations from endemic and non-endemic areas in Germany show differential susceptibility to TBEV

Tick populations from endemic and non-endemic areas in Germany show differential susceptibility to TBEV

Potential of ferritin 2 as an antigen for the development of a universal vaccine for avian mites, poultry red mites, tropical fowl mites, and northern fowl mites

Mialostatin, a Novel Midgut Cystatin from Ixodes ricinus Ticks: Crystal Structure and Regulation of Host Blood Digestion

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