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Reyes JB, McVicar M, Beniwal S, Sharma A, Tillett R, Petereit J, Nuss A, Gulia-Nuss M. A multi-omics approach for understanding blood digestion dynamics in Ixodes scapularis and identification of anti-tick vaccine targets. Ticks Tick Borne Dis 2024; 15:102379. [PMID: 39033644 DOI: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2024.102379] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/28/2024] [Revised: 06/25/2024] [Accepted: 06/26/2024] [Indexed: 07/23/2024]
Abstract
Ixodes scapularis, the black-legged tick, is a major arthropod vector that transmits the causative agents of Lyme disease and several other pathogens of human significance. The tick midgut is the main tissue involved in blood acquisition and digestion and the first organ to have contact with pathogens ingested through the blood meal. Gene expression in the midgut before, during, and after a blood meal may vary in response to the physiological changes due to blood feeding. A systems biology approach based on RNA and protein sequencing was used to gain insight into the changes in tick midgut transcripts and proteins during blood ingestion (unfed and partially fed) and digestion (1-, 2-, 7-, and 14 days post detachment from the host) by the Ixodes scapularis female ticks. A total of 2,726 differentially expressed transcripts, and 449 proteins were identified across the time points. Genes involved in detoxification of xenobiotics, proteases, protease inhibitors, metabolism, and immunity were differentially expressed in response to blood feeding. Similarly, proteins corresponding to the same groups were also differentially expressed. Nine genes from major gene categories were chosen as potential vaccine candidates, and, using RNA interference, the effect of these gene knockdowns on tick biology was investigated. Knockdown of these genes had variable negative impacts on tick physiology, such as the inability to engorge fully and to produce eggs and increased mortality. These and additional gene targets provide opportunities to explore novel tick control strategies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeremiah B Reyes
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Nevada, Reno, USA, 89557; Nevada Bioinformatics Center, University of Nevada Reno, USA, 89557
| | - Molly McVicar
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Nevada, Reno, USA, 89557
| | - Saransh Beniwal
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Nevada, Reno, USA, 89557; Department of Computer Science and Engineering, University of Nevada, Reno, USA, 89557
| | - Arvind Sharma
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Nevada, Reno, USA, 89557
| | - Richard Tillett
- Nevada Bioinformatics Center, University of Nevada Reno, USA, 89557
| | - Juli Petereit
- Nevada Bioinformatics Center, University of Nevada Reno, USA, 89557
| | - Andrew Nuss
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Nevada, Reno, USA, 89557; Department of Agriculture, Veterinary, and Rangeland Science, University of Nevada Reno, USA, 89557
| | - Monika Gulia-Nuss
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, University of Nevada, Reno, USA, 89557.
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Zhang YK, Li SS, Yang C, Zhang YF, Liu JZ. Mechanism of the toxic effects of tetracycline on blood meal digestion in Haemaphysalis longicornis. EXPERIMENTAL & APPLIED ACAROLOGY 2023; 91:681-695. [PMID: 37987890 DOI: 10.1007/s10493-023-00858-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2023] [Accepted: 10/20/2023] [Indexed: 11/22/2023]
Abstract
The extensive utilization of antibiotics in the field of animal husbandry gives rise to various concerns pertaining to the environment and human health. Here, we demonstrate that the administration of tetracycline impedes blood meal digestion in the tick Haemaphysalis longicornis. Tissue sectioning, 16S rRNA high-throughput sequencing, and transcriptome sequencing of the midgut were employed to elucidate the mechanism underlying tetracycline toxicity. The treatment group consisted of engorged female ticks that were subjected to tetracycline microinjections (75 µg per tick), whereas the control group received sterile water injections. On days 2 and 4 following the injections, the tick body weight changes were assessed and the midguts were dissected and processed. Change in tick body weight in tetracycline-treated group was less than in the control group. In tetracycline-treated ticks, midgut epithelial cells were loosely connected and blood meal digestion was impaired compared to the control group. There was no significant change in midgut bacterial diversity after tetracycline treatment. On day 2 following treatment, the relative abundance of Escherichia-Shigella was significantly decreased, whereas the relative abundance of Allorhizobium was significantly increased compared to the control group. On day 4 following treatment, the relative abundance of Escherichia-Shigella, Allorhizobium, Ochrobactrum, and Acidibacter decreased significantly, whereas the relative abundance of Paraburkholderia and Pelomonas increased significantly. Tetracycline treatment also affected midgut gene expression, producing a cumulative effect wherein the differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were mostly down-regulated. KEGG enrichment pathway analysis revealed that on day 2 the up-regulated DEGs were significantly enriched in 21 pathways, including apoptosis and phagosome. Comparatively, the down-regulated DEGs were significantly enriched in 26 pathways, including N-glycan biosynthesis, lysosome, and autophagy. In contrast, on day 4 the up-regulated DEGs were significantly enriched in 10 pathways including aminoacyl-tRNA biosynthesis, ribosome biogenesis, RNA transport, and DNA replication, whereas the down-regulated differential genes were significantly enriched in 11 pathways including lysosome, peroxisome, N-glycan biosynthesis, and fatty acid synthesis. This indicates that tetracycline injection inhibited blood meal digestion by affecting midgut digestive cells, gut flora diversity, and gene expression. These findings could contribute to tick control by inhibiting blood meal digestion.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yan-Kai Zhang
- Hebei Key Laboratory of Animal Physiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, College of Life Sciences, Hebei Normal University, Shijiazhuang, 050024, Hebei, China.
| | - Si-Si Li
- Hebei Key Laboratory of Animal Physiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, College of Life Sciences, Hebei Normal University, Shijiazhuang, 050024, Hebei, China
- Hebei Key Laboratory of Wetland Ecology and Conservation, Hengshui University, Hengshui, 053000, Hebei, China
| | - Chen Yang
- Hebei Key Laboratory of Animal Physiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, College of Life Sciences, Hebei Normal University, Shijiazhuang, 050024, Hebei, China
| | - Yu-Fan Zhang
- Hebei Key Laboratory of Animal Physiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, College of Life Sciences, Hebei Normal University, Shijiazhuang, 050024, Hebei, China
| | - Jing-Ze Liu
- Hebei Key Laboratory of Animal Physiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, College of Life Sciences, Hebei Normal University, Shijiazhuang, 050024, Hebei, China
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Omondi D, Zweygarth E, Murungi E, Jongejan F, Nijhof AM. De novo assembly and annotation of the Amblyomma hebraeum tick midgut transcriptome response to Ehrlichia ruminantium infection. PLoS Negl Trop Dis 2023; 17:e0011554. [PMID: 37578991 PMCID: PMC10449191 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pntd.0011554] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2023] [Revised: 08/24/2023] [Accepted: 07/26/2023] [Indexed: 08/16/2023] Open
Abstract
The South African bont tick Amblyomma hebraeum is a hematophagous vector for the heartwater disease pathogen Ehrlichia ruminantium in southern Africa. During feeding, the tick's enterocytes express proteins that perform vital functions in blood digestion, including proteins that may be involved in E. ruminantium acquisition, colonization or immunity. To delineate the molecular mechanism of midgut response to E. ruminantium infection, we performed comparative analyses of midgut transcriptomes of E. ruminantium infected engorged A. hebraeum nymphs, and infected adult male and female ticks with their corresponding matched uninfected controls, before and during feeding. A total of 102,036 unigenes were annotated in public databases and their expression levels analyzed for engorged nymphs as well as unfed and partly-fed adult ticks. There were 2,025 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) in midguts, of which 1,225 unigenes were up-regulated and 800 unigenes were down-regulated in the midguts of infected ticks. Annotation of DEGs revealed an increase in metabolic and cellular processes among E. ruminantium infected ticks. Notably, among the infected ticks, there was up-regulation in the expression of genes involved in tick immunity, histone proteins and oxidative stress responses. We also observed up-regulation of glycoproteins that E. ruminantium could potentially use as docking sites for host cell entry. Insights uncovered in this study offer a platform for further investigations into the molecular interaction between E. ruminantium and A. hebraeum.
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Affiliation(s)
- David Omondi
- Institute of Parasitology and Tropical Veterinary Medicine, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Veterinary Centre for Resistance Research (TZR), Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, Egerton University, Njoro, Kenya
| | - Erich Zweygarth
- Institute of Parasitology and Tropical Veterinary Medicine, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Department of Veterinary Tropical Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Edwin Murungi
- Department of Medical Biochemistry, School of Health Sciences, Kisii University, Kisii, Kenya
| | - Frans Jongejan
- Department of Veterinary Tropical Diseases, Faculty of Veterinary Science, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Ard M. Nijhof
- Institute of Parasitology and Tropical Veterinary Medicine, Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
- Veterinary Centre for Resistance Research (TZR), Freie Universität Berlin, Berlin, Germany
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Lu S, Martins LA, Kotál J, Ribeiro JMC, Tirloni L. A longitudinal transcriptomic analysis from unfed to post-engorgement midguts of adult female Ixodes scapularis. Sci Rep 2023; 13:11360. [PMID: 37443274 PMCID: PMC10345007 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-38207-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/16/2023] [Accepted: 07/05/2023] [Indexed: 07/15/2023] Open
Abstract
The hematophagy behavior has evolved independently several times within the Arthropoda phylum. Interestingly, the process of acquiring a blood meal in ticks is considerably distinct from that observed in other blood-feeding arthropods. Instead of taking seconds to minutes to complete a blood meal, an adult female Ixodes scapularis tick can remain attached to its host for numerous days. During this extended feeding period, the tick undergoes drastic morphological changes. It is well established that the tick midgut plays a pivotal role not only in blood meal digestion but also in pathogen acquisition and transmission. However, our understanding of the underlying molecular mechanisms involved in these events remains limited. To expedite tick research, we conducted a comprehensive longitudinal RNA-sequencing of the tick midgut before, during, and after feeding. By collecting ticks in different feeding stages (unfed, slow feeding, rapid feeding, and early post-detached), we obtained a comprehensive overview of the transcripts present in each stage and the dynamic transcriptional changes that occur between them. This provides valuable insights into tick physiology. Additionally, through unsupervised clustering, we identified transcripts with similar patterns and stage-specific sequences. These findings serve as a foundation for selecting targets in the development of anti-tick control strategies and facilitate a better understanding of how blood feeding and pathogen infection impact tick physiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stephen Lu
- Vector Biology Section, Laboratory of Malaria and Vector Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Larissa A Martins
- Tick-Pathogen Transmission Unit, Laboratory of Bacteriology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Hamilton, MT, USA
- Laboratory of Persistent Viral Diseases, Neuroimmunology Unit, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Hamilton, MT, USA
| | - Jan Kotál
- Tick-Pathogen Transmission Unit, Laboratory of Bacteriology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Hamilton, MT, USA
| | - José M C Ribeiro
- Vector Biology Section, Laboratory of Malaria and Vector Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Bethesda, MD, USA
| | - Lucas Tirloni
- Tick-Pathogen Transmission Unit, Laboratory of Bacteriology, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Hamilton, MT, USA.
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Nogueira BCF, Orozco AMO, Argumedo AK, de Oliveira Faustino A, de Oliveira LL, da Fonseca LA, Campos AK. Circulating oxidative stress and acute phase protein levels in horses infested with ticks. EXPERIMENTAL & APPLIED ACAROLOGY 2023:10.1007/s10493-023-00798-z. [PMID: 37285109 DOI: 10.1007/s10493-023-00798-z] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/30/2022] [Accepted: 05/05/2023] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Ticks have saliva rich in immunoregulatory molecules that interfere with the host's physiology in order to feed. This study aimed to evaluate the concentration of acute phase proteins and circulating oxidative stress in response to infestation by Amblyomma sculptum and Dermacentor nitens in two breed horses, Mangalarga Marchador and Breton Postier, to define resistance or susceptibility to ticks. Among the oxidative stress markers, we observed lower malondialdehyde and nitric oxide in horses with tick infestation, consequently not altering the antioxidant enzymes. Breton Postier with tick infestation showed a reduction in the ferric reducing ability of plasma (FRAP), which may be due to lower feeding of the host due to the stress caused by the infestation or even to sequestration of components induced by the tick during blood feeding. The alpha-1-antitrypsin, an acute phase protein, showed an increase in Mangalarga Marchador with tick infestation; curiously it is related to a protective action against tissue damage, pathogens and parasites. We could assume that Mangalarga Marchador showed a better response to ticks when compared to Breton Postier. However, it is still early to define the resistance or susceptibility to ticks, as we did not observe significant changes in most of the analyzed variables. Further studies are needed to understand the compounds and mechanisms of action of the tick saliva in the acute phase proteins and the possible relationships of oxidative stress in the host and the tick during blood feeding.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Ana Karina Argumedo
- Department of General Biology, Federal University of Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | | | | | | | - Artur Kanadani Campos
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, Federal University of Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil.
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Nogueira BCF, da Silva Soares E, Mauricio Ortega Orozco A, Abreu da Fonseca L, Kanadani Campos A. Evidence that ectoparasites influence the hematological parameters of the host: a systematic review. Anim Health Res Rev 2023; 24:28-39. [PMID: 37527971 DOI: 10.1017/s1466252323000051] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 08/03/2023]
Abstract
Ectoparasites are important to the one health concept because their parasitism can result in the transmission of pathogens, allergic reactions, the release of toxins, morbidity, and even death of the host. Ectoparasites can affect host physiology, as reflected in immune defenses and body condition as well as hematological and biochemical parameters. Thus, evidence that ectoparasites influence host hematological parameters was systematically reviewed, and the methodological quality of these studies was analyzed. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis guidelines were followed, and the studies included were limited to those that evaluated changes in hematological tests in ectoparasite-infested and non-infested animals, and bias and methodological quality were evaluated using the Animal Research: Reporting of In Vivo Experiments guideline. Thirty-four studies were selected and information about the host, ectoparasite infestation, blood collection, and analysis was collected and compared whenever possible. In this review, the presence of ectoparasites influenced both the red series and the white series of hematological parameters. Among the main parameters analyzed, hematocrit, red blood cells, hemoglobin, and lymphocytes showed reductions, probably due to ectoparasite blood-feeding, while including eosinophils, neutrophils, and basophils increased in infested animals due to the host immune response. However, methodologic improvements are needed to reduce the risk of bias, enhance the reproducibility of such studies, and ensure results aligned with the mechanisms that act in the ectoparasite-host relationship.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Elaine da Silva Soares
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, Federal University of Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | | | | | - Artur Kanadani Campos
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, Federal University of Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil
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Wang T, Wang T, Zhang M, Shi X, Zhang M, Wang H, Yang X, Yu Z, Liu J. The Ovarian Development Genes of Bisexual and Parthenogenetic Haemaphysalis longicornis Evaluated by Transcriptomics and Proteomics. Front Vet Sci 2021; 8:783404. [PMID: 34977217 PMCID: PMC8714755 DOI: 10.3389/fvets.2021.783404] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2021] [Accepted: 11/23/2021] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
The tick Haemaphysalis longicornis has two reproductive groups: a bisexual group (HLBP) and a parthenogenetic group (HLPP). The comparative molecular regulation of ovarian development in these two groups is unexplored. We conducted transcriptome sequencing and quantitative proteomics on the ovaries of HLBP and HLPP, in different feeding stages, to evaluate the molecular function of genes associated with ovarian development. The ovarian tissues of HLBP and HLPP were divided into three feeding stages (early-fed, partially-fed and engorged). A total of 87,233 genes and 2,833 proteins were annotated in the ovary of H. longicornis in the different feeding stages. The differentially expressed genes (DEGs) of functional pathway analysis indicated that Lysosome, MAPK Signaling Pathway, Phagosome, Regulation of Actin Cytoskeleton, Endocytosis, Apoptosis, Insulin Signaling Pathway, Oxidative Phosphorylation, and Sphingolipid Metabolism were most abundant in the ovary of H. longicornis in the different feeding stages. Comparing the DEGs between HLBP and HLPP revealed that the ABC Transporter, PI3K-Akt Signaling Pathway and cAMP Signaling Pathway were the most enriched and suggested that the functions of signal transduction mechanisms may have changed during ovarian development. The functions of the annotated proteome of ovarian tissues were strongly correlated with the transcriptome annotation results, and these were further validated using quantitative polymerase chain reaction (qPCR). In the HLBP, the expression of cathepsin L, secreted proteins and glycosidase proteins was significantly up-regulated during feeding stages. In the HLPP, the lysozyme, yolk proteins, heat shock protein, glutathione S transferase, myosin and ATP synthase proteins were up-regulated during feeding stages. The significant differences of the gene expression between HLBP and HLPP indicated that variations in the genetic background and molecular function might exist in the two groups. These results provide a foundation for understanding the molecular mechanism and exploring the functions of genes in the ovarian development of different reproductive groups of H. longicornis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tianhong Wang
- Hebei Key Laboratory of Animal Physiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, College of Life Sciences, Hebei Normal University, Shijiazhuang, China
- Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, College of Basic Medicine, Hebei University of Chinese Medicine, Shijiazhuang, China
| | - Tongxuan Wang
- Hebei Key Laboratory of Animal Physiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, College of Life Sciences, Hebei Normal University, Shijiazhuang, China
| | - Meng Zhang
- Hebei Key Laboratory of Animal Physiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, College of Life Sciences, Hebei Normal University, Shijiazhuang, China
| | - Xinyue Shi
- Hebei Key Laboratory of Animal Physiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, College of Life Sciences, Hebei Normal University, Shijiazhuang, China
| | - Miao Zhang
- Hebei Key Laboratory of Animal Physiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, College of Life Sciences, Hebei Normal University, Shijiazhuang, China
| | - Hui Wang
- Hebei Key Laboratory of Animal Physiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, College of Life Sciences, Hebei Normal University, Shijiazhuang, China
| | - Xiaolong Yang
- Hebei Key Laboratory of Animal Physiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, College of Life Sciences, Hebei Normal University, Shijiazhuang, China
| | - Zhijun Yu
- Hebei Key Laboratory of Animal Physiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, College of Life Sciences, Hebei Normal University, Shijiazhuang, China
| | - Jingze Liu
- Hebei Key Laboratory of Animal Physiology, Biochemistry and Molecular Biology, College of Life Sciences, Hebei Normal University, Shijiazhuang, China
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Reck J, Webster A, Dall'Agnol B, Pienaar R, de Castro MH, Featherston J, Mans BJ. Transcriptomic Analysis of Salivary Glands of Ornithodoros brasiliensis Aragão, 1923, the Agent of a Neotropical Tick-Toxicosis Syndrome in Humans. Front Physiol 2021; 12:725635. [PMID: 34421661 PMCID: PMC8378177 DOI: 10.3389/fphys.2021.725635] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/15/2021] [Accepted: 07/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/04/2022] Open
Abstract
Tick salivary glands produce and secrete a variety of compounds that modulate host responses and ensure a successful blood meal. Despite great progress made in the identification of ticks salivary compounds in recent years, there is still a paucity of information concerning salivary molecules of Neotropical argasid ticks. Among this group of ticks, considering the number of human cases of parasitism, including severe syndromes and hospitalization, Ornithodoros brasiliensis can be considered one of the major Neotropical argasid species with impact in public health. Here, we describe the transcriptome analysis of O. brasiliensis salivary glands (ObSG). The transcriptome yielded ~14,957 putative contigs. A total of 368 contigs were attributed to secreted proteins (SP), which represent approximately 2.5% of transcripts but ~53% expression coverage transcripts per million. Lipocalins are the major protein family among the most expressed SP, accounting for ~16% of the secretory transcripts and 51% of secretory protein abundance. The most expressed transcript is an ortholog of TSGP4 (tick salivary gland protein 4), a lipocalin first identified in Ornithodoros kalahariensis that functions as a leukotriene C4 scavenger. A total of 55 lipocalin transcripts were identified in ObSG. Other transcripts potentially involved in tick-host interaction included as: basic/acid tail secretory proteins (second most abundant expressed group), serine protease inhibitors (including Kunitz inhibitors), 5' nucleotidases (tick apyrases), phospholipase A2, 7 disulfide bond domain, cystatins, and tick antimicrobial peptides. Another abundant group of proteins in ObSG is metalloproteases. Analysis of these major protein groups suggests that several duplication events after speciation were responsible for the abundance of redundant compounds in tick salivary glands. A full mitochondrial genome could be assembled from the transcriptome data and confirmed the close genetic identity of the tick strain sampled in the current study, to a tick strain previously implicated in tick toxicoses. This study provides novel information on the molecular composition of ObSG, a Brazilian endemic tick associated with several human cases of parasitism. These results could be helpful in the understanding of clinical findings observed in bitten patients, and also, could provide more information on the evolution of Neotropical argasids.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jose Reck
- Instituto de Pesquisas Veterinárias Desidério Finamor (IPVDF), Eldorado do Sul, Brazil
| | - Anelise Webster
- Instituto de Pesquisas Veterinárias Desidério Finamor (IPVDF), Eldorado do Sul, Brazil
| | - Bruno Dall'Agnol
- Instituto de Pesquisas Veterinárias Desidério Finamor (IPVDF), Eldorado do Sul, Brazil
| | - Ronel Pienaar
- Epidemiology, Parasites and Vectors, Agricultural Research Council, Onderstepoort Veterinary Research, Pretoria, South Africa
| | - Minique H de Castro
- Agricultural Research Council, Biotechnology Platform, Pretoria, South Africa
| | | | - Ben J Mans
- Epidemiology, Parasites and Vectors, Agricultural Research Council, Onderstepoort Veterinary Research, Pretoria, South Africa.,Department of Veterinary Tropical Diseases, Vector and Vector-borne Disease Research Programme, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa.,Department of Life and Consumer Sciences, University of South Africa, Pretoria, South Africa
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Davies B, Rosendale AJ, Gantz JD, Lee RE, Denlinger DL, Benoit JB. Cross-tolerance and transcriptional shifts underlying abiotic stress in the seabird tick, Ixodes uriae. Polar Biol 2021. [DOI: 10.1007/s00300-021-02887-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
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10
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Zhao Y, Qu ZH, Jiao FC. De novo transcriptome sequencing and comparative profiling of the ovary in partially engorged and fully engorged Haemaphysalis flava ticks. Parasitol Int 2021; 83:102344. [PMID: 33894390 DOI: 10.1016/j.parint.2021.102344] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/23/2020] [Revised: 03/25/2021] [Accepted: 04/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Haemaphysalis flava is the vector of several pathogens and has medical and veterinary importance. Transcriptome information of the ovary of H. flava is unavailable and limits understanding of its molecular basis of reproduction. We studied the ovary transcriptome of partially engorged and fully engorged H. flava using high-throughput RNA sequencing technology. A total of 53,025,360 and 57,942,890 clean reads were obtained with 7.95 GB and 8.69 GB clean bases in partially engorged ticks (PETs) and fully engorged ticks (FETs), respectively. The clean reads were assembled into 138,711 unigenes. A total of 72,043 unigenes (51.93%) were annotated and 66,668 unigenes (48.07%) were unknown. A total of 38,487 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were found between PET and FET with 19,031 upregulated genes and 19,456 downregulated genes. The RNA-seq results were validated by qRT-PCR, including six upregulated genes and three downregulated genes. Some unigenes coding for nutrient transporters, proteases, and protease inhibitors were found and analyzed. This study was the first time to perform the transcriptome sequences of the ovary of partially engorged and fully engorged H. flava. The results can benefit the understanding of the molecular basis of ovary maturation and oogenesis of the H. flava and boost the development of the strategies for control of H. flava.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yu Zhao
- College of Animal Science and Veterinary Medicine, Xinyang Agriculture and Forestry University, Xinyang 464000, Henan province, China; Hunan Provincial Key Laboratory of Protein Engineering in Animal Vaccines, College of Veterinary Medicine, Hunan Agricultural University, Changsha 410128, Hunan Province, China
| | - Zhe-Hui Qu
- College of Animal Science and Veterinary Medicine, Xinyang Agriculture and Forestry University, Xinyang 464000, Henan province, China
| | - Feng-Chao Jiao
- College of Animal Science and Veterinary Medicine, Xinyang Agriculture and Forestry University, Xinyang 464000, Henan province, China.
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11
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Nogueira BCF, Campos AK, Alves RS, de Cássia Vieira Faria R, Sarandy MM, Fonseca E Silva F, Gonçalves RV. Oxidative and local histopathological response on skin wound of horses due to Amblyomma sculptum tick parasitism. Res Vet Sci 2021; 136:550-560. [PMID: 33892365 DOI: 10.1016/j.rvsc.2021.04.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2020] [Revised: 03/31/2021] [Accepted: 04/12/2021] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
Abstract
Amblyomma sculptum is frequently observed parasitizing horses, responsible for economic losses, damage to the host''s skin and transmission of pathogens. The oxidative stress profile and inflammatory mechanisms involved in this parasitism remain poorly studied. Thus, this study aimed to assess the histopathological changes and oxidative profile responses of horses in the attachment site of A. sculptum to find variations that indicate resistance and susceptibility between the breeds to this tick, based on the hypothesis that resistant animals have a greater inflammatory response and lesser number of attached ticks. We analyzed female horses of two breeds, Mangalarga Marchador and Breton Postier, naturally infested by Amblyomma sculptum. The ticks were counted and full-thickness excisional skin wounds of 10 mm were made on the perineal region on the attachment site of partially engorged females for histological and biochemical analyzes. The occurrence of the tick on the skin caused an increase in cellularity, inflammatory infiltrate, mast cells, pyknotic nuclei, and changes in the fibrous components of the matrix. The negative correlation observed between tick infestation and inflammatory response indicated that animals with greater inflammatory response tend to have less tick infestation. The oxidative stress markers, MDA, PCN and NO not present great variation; however, between the antioxidant enzymes levels, SOD was higher in tick attachment of Breton Postier skin, this may mean that these animals had higher oxidative enzymatic activity and consequently less tissue damage, while the GST dropped in the attachment sites compared to the control, which may indicate that animals were in a state of significant oxidative stress or raises the question of the possibility of enzymatic sequestration by ticks. No significant differences were found in the resistance of the two breeds since most of the analyzes varied due to the presence or absence of the tick attached to the skin. We draw attention to the importance of studying characteristics of the animal's antioxidant responses to the tick and the action of tick saliva on antioxidant enzymes and ROS because these characteristics are interdependent with the inflammatory response.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Artur Kanadani Campos
- Department of Veterinary Medicine, Federal University of Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil.
| | - Raul Santos Alves
- Department of General Biology, Federal University of Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil
| | | | | | | | - Reggiani Vilela Gonçalves
- Department of General Biology, Federal University of Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil; Department of Animal Biology, Federal University of Viçosa, Viçosa, Minas Gerais, Brazil.
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12
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Costa GCA, Ribeiro ICT, Melo-Junior O, Gontijo NF, Sant'Anna MRV, Pereira MH, Pessoa GCD, Koerich LB, Oliveira F, Valenzuela JG, Giunchetti RC, Fujiwara RT, Bartholomeu DC, Araujo RN. Amblyomma sculptum Salivary Protease Inhibitors as Potential Anti-Tick Vaccines. Front Immunol 2021; 11:611104. [PMID: 33633731 PMCID: PMC7901972 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2020.611104] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/28/2020] [Accepted: 12/17/2020] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Amblyomma sculptum is the main tick associated with human bites in Brazil and the main vector of Rickettsia rickettsii, the causative agent of the most severe form of Brazilian spotted fever. Molecules produced in the salivary glands are directly related to feeding success and vector competence. In the present study, we identified sequences of A. sculptum salivary proteins that may be involved in hematophagy and selected three proteins that underwent functional characterization and evaluation as vaccine antigens. Among the three proteins selected, one contained a Kunitz_bovine pancreatic trypsin inhibitor domain (named AsKunitz) and the other two belonged to the 8.9 kDa and basic tail families of tick salivary proteins (named As8.9kDa and AsBasicTail). Expression of the messenger RNA (mRNA) encoding all three proteins was detected in the larvae, nymphs, and females at basal levels in unfed ticks and the expression levels increased after the start of feeding. Recombinant proteins rAs8.9kDa and rAsBasicTail inhibited the enzymatic activity of factor Xa, thrombin, and trypsin, whereas rAsKunitz inhibited only thrombin activity. All three recombinant proteins inhibited the hemolysis of both the classical and alternative pathways; this is the first description of tick members of the Kunitz and 8.9kDa families being inhibitors of the classical complement pathway. Mice immunization with recombinant proteins caused efficacies against A. sculptum females from 59.4% with rAsBasicTail immunization to more than 85% by immunization with rAsKunitz and rAs8.9kDa. The mortality of nymphs fed on immunized mice reached 70–100%. Therefore, all three proteins are potential antigens with the possibility of becoming a new tool in the control of A. sculptum.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gabriel Cerqueira Alves Costa
- Laboratory of Physiology of Hematophagous Insects, Department of Parasitology, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | - Izabela Cosso Tavares Ribeiro
- Laboratory of Physiology of Hematophagous Insects, Department of Parasitology, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | - Otoni Melo-Junior
- Laboratory of Cell-Cell Interactions, Department of Morphology, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | - Nelder F Gontijo
- Laboratory of Physiology of Hematophagous Insects, Department of Parasitology, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.,Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia em Entomologia Molecular, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Mauricio R V Sant'Anna
- Laboratory of Physiology of Hematophagous Insects, Department of Parasitology, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.,Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia em Entomologia Molecular, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Marcos H Pereira
- Laboratory of Physiology of Hematophagous Insects, Department of Parasitology, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.,Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia em Entomologia Molecular, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Grasielle C D Pessoa
- Laboratory of Physiology of Hematophagous Insects, Department of Parasitology, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.,Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia em Entomologia Molecular, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Leonardo B Koerich
- Laboratory of Physiology of Hematophagous Insects, Department of Parasitology, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.,Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia em Entomologia Molecular, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
| | - Fabiano Oliveira
- Section of Vector Biology, Laboratory of Malaria and Vector Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Jesus G Valenzuela
- Section of Vector Biology, Laboratory of Malaria and Vector Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD, United States
| | - Rodolfo Cordeiro Giunchetti
- Laboratory of Cell-Cell Interactions, Department of Morphology, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | - Ricardo Toshio Fujiwara
- Laboratory of Immunology and Genomics of Parasites, Department of Parasitology, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | - Daniella Castanheira Bartholomeu
- Laboratory of Immunology and Genomics of Parasites, Department of Parasitology, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil
| | - Ricardo N Araujo
- Laboratory of Physiology of Hematophagous Insects, Department of Parasitology, Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Belo Horizonte, Brazil.,Instituto Nacional de Ciência e Tecnologia em Entomologia Molecular, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil
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13
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Karim S, Kumar D, Adamson S, Ennen JR, Qualls CP, Ribeiro JMC. The sialotranscriptome of the gopher-tortoise tick, Amblyomma tuberculatum. Ticks Tick Borne Dis 2020; 12:101560. [PMID: 33007669 DOI: 10.1016/j.ttbdis.2020.101560] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/23/2020] [Revised: 08/07/2020] [Accepted: 09/14/2020] [Indexed: 12/16/2022]
Abstract
The gopher tortoise tick, Amblyomma tuberculatum, is known to parasitize keystone ectotherm reptile species. The biological success of ticks requires precise mechanisms to evade host hemostatic and immune responses. Acquisition of a full blood meal requires attachment, establishment of the blood pool, and engorgement of the tick. Tick saliva contains molecules which counter the host responses to allow uninterrupted feeding on the host. RNASeq of the salivary glands of Amblyomma tuberculatum ticks were sequenced resulting in 138,030 pyrosequencing reads which were assembled into 29,991 contigs. A total of 1875 coding sequences were deduced from the transcriptome assembly, including 602 putative secretory and 982 putative housekeeping proteins. The annotated data sets are available as a hyperlinked spreadsheet. The sialotranscriptome assembled for this tick species made available a valuable resource for mining novel pharmacological activities and comparative analysis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Shahid Karim
- School of Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences, The University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS 39406, USA
| | - Deepak Kumar
- School of Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences, The University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS 39406, USA
| | - Steve Adamson
- School of Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences, The University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS 39406, USA
| | - Joshua R Ennen
- School of Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences, The University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS 39406, USA
| | - Carl P Qualls
- School of Biological, Environmental, and Earth Sciences, The University of Southern Mississippi, Hattiesburg, MS 39406, USA
| | - José M C Ribeiro
- Vector Biology Section, Laboratory of Malaria and Vector Research, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, National Institutes of Health, 12732 Twinbrook Parkway, Room 3E28, Rockville MD 20852, USA.
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14
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Mans BJ. Quantitative Visions of Reality at the Tick-Host Interface: Biochemistry, Genomics, Proteomics, and Transcriptomics as Measures of Complete Inventories of the Tick Sialoverse. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2020; 10:574405. [PMID: 33042874 PMCID: PMC7517725 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2020.574405] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2020] [Accepted: 08/13/2020] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Species have definitive genomes. Even so, the transcriptional and translational products of the genome are dynamic and subject to change over time. This is especially true for the proteins secreted by ticks at the tick-host feeding interface that represent a complex system known as the sialoverse. The sialoverse represent all of the proteins derived from tick salivary glands for all tick species that may be involved in tick-host interaction and the modulation of the host's defense mechanisms. The current study contemplates the advances made over time to understand and describe the complexity present in the sialoverse. Technological advances at given periods in time allowed detection of functions, genes, and proteins enabling a deeper insight into the complexity of the sialoverse and a concomitant expansion in complexity with as yet, no end in sight. The importance of systematic classification of the sialoverse is highlighted with the realization that our coverage of transcriptome and proteome space remains incomplete, but that complete descriptions may be possible in the future. Even so, analysis and integration of the sialoverse into a comprehensive understanding of tick-host interactions may require further technological advances given the high level of expected complexity that remains to be uncovered.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ben J Mans
- Epidemiology, Parasites and Vectors, Agricultural Research Council-Onderstepoort Veterinary Research, Pretoria, South Africa.,Department of Veterinary Tropical Diseases, University of Pretoria, Pretoria, South Africa.,Department of Life and Consumer Sciences, University of South Africa, Pretoria, South Africa
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15
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Etebari K, Lindsay KR, Ward AL, Furlong MJ. Australian sugarcane soldier fly's salivary gland transcriptome in response to starvation and feeding on sugarcane crops. INSECT SCIENCE 2020; 27:708-720. [PMID: 30946538 DOI: 10.1111/1744-7917.12676] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/21/2019] [Revised: 03/27/2019] [Accepted: 03/31/2019] [Indexed: 06/09/2023]
Abstract
The soldier fly is an endemic pest of sugarcane in Australia. Small numbers of larvae can cause significant damage to roots and reduce the crop yields. Little is known about the composition and function of the soldier fly salivary gland, its secretions, and their roles in insect-plant interactions. In this study, we performed transcriptome analysis of the salivary glands of starved and sugarcane root-fed soldier fly larvae. A total of 31 119 highly expressed assembled contigs were identified in the salivary glands and almost 50% of them showed high levels of similarity to known proteins in Nr databases. Of all the obtained contigs, only 9727 sequences contain an open reading frame of over 100 amino acids. Around 31% of contigs were predicted to encode secretory proteins, including some digestive and detoxifying enzymes and potential effectors. Some known salivary secreted peptides such as serine protease, cysteine proteinase inhibitors, antimicrobial peptides and venom proteins were among the top 100 highly expressed genes. Differential gene expression analysis revealed significant modulation of 850 transcripts in salivary glands upon exposure to plant roots or starvation stress. Here, we identified some venom proteins which were significantly upregulated in the salivary glands of soldier fly larvae exposed to sugarcane roots. In other insects and nematodes some of these proteins have been used to manipulate host plant defense systems and facilitate the invasion of the host plant. These findings provide a further insight into the identification of potential effector proteins involved in soldier fly-sugarcane interactions.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kayvan Etebari
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
| | | | - Andrew L Ward
- Sugar Research Australia, Indooroopilly, QLD, Australia
| | - Michael J Furlong
- School of Biological Sciences, The University of Queensland, Brisbane, QLD, Australia
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16
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Xu Z, Yan Y, Cao J, Zhou Y, Zhang H, Xu Q, Zhou J. A family of serine protease inhibitors (serpins) and its expression profiles in the ovaries of Rhipicephalus haemaphysaloides. INFECTION GENETICS AND EVOLUTION 2020; 84:104346. [PMID: 32360539 DOI: 10.1016/j.meegid.2020.104346] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2020] [Revised: 04/25/2020] [Accepted: 04/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/28/2022]
Abstract
Serpins are evolutionarily conserved serine protease inhibitors found in many organisms. In arthropods, serpins are involved in feeding, development, oviposition, anti-coagulation and innate immune responses. We characterized of 11 serpins in the tick Rhipicephalus haemaphysaloides. These serpins have orthologous genes in other ticks, as indicated by phylogenetic analysis. Analysis of the reactive center loop and hinge regions of the protein sequences indicated that RHS7 encodes proteins that may lack proteinase inhibitor activity. All R. haemaphysaloides serpins had high amino acid sequence identities to Rhipicephalus microplus serpins. Tissue and temporal transcriptional profiling of eight R. haemaphysaloides serpins located in the ovaries demonstrated that they are transcribed during feeding and oviposition. These suggested their participation in the regulation of tick physiology. Immune serum from rabbits repeatedly infested with larvae, nymphs and adults of R. haemaphysaloides can recognize multiple recombinant serpins, respectively. After gene silencing, the blood feeding to repletion time was significantly longer and the 24 h attachment rate was significantly lower in the RHS3 and RHS7 knock down groups. The RHS9 and RHS11 silenced ticks had significant reduction in repletion time and egg-laying rate. Egg hatchability was significantly decreased in RHS4, RHS5 and RHS9 silenced ticks. All groups had significant reductions in engorged body weight. This study increases information on the serpins of R. haemaphysaloides and suggests that some RHSs are potential targets for development of tick vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zhengmao Xu
- Key Laboratory of Animal Parasitology of Ministry of Agriculture, Shanghai Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Yijie Yan
- Key Laboratory of Animal Parasitology of Ministry of Agriculture, Shanghai Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shanghai, China; College of Animal Science and Technology, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei, China
| | - Jie Cao
- Key Laboratory of Animal Parasitology of Ministry of Agriculture, Shanghai Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shanghai, China.
| | - Yongzhi Zhou
- Key Laboratory of Animal Parasitology of Ministry of Agriculture, Shanghai Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shanghai, China.
| | - Houshuang Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Animal Parasitology of Ministry of Agriculture, Shanghai Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shanghai, China.
| | - Qianming Xu
- College of Animal Science and Technology, Anhui Agricultural University, Hefei, China.
| | - Jinlin Zhou
- Key Laboratory of Animal Parasitology of Ministry of Agriculture, Shanghai Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shanghai, China.
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17
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Wang F, Wang Y, Wang G, Zhang H, Kuang C, Zhou Y, Cao J, Zhou J. Ovary Proteome Analysis Reveals RH36 Regulates Reproduction via Vitellin Uptake Mediated by HSP70 Protein in Hard Ticks. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2020; 10:93. [PMID: 32211346 PMCID: PMC7076983 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2020.00093] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2019] [Accepted: 02/21/2020] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Ticks are blood-sucking vector arthropods, which play an important role in transmitting pathogens between humans and animals. RH36 is an immunomodulatory protein expressed in the salivary glands, but not other organs, of partially fed Rhipicephalus haemaphysaloides ticks, and it reaches its peak on the day of tick engorgement. RH36 gene silencing inhibited tick blood feeding and induced a significant decrease in tick oviposition, indicating that another function of immunosuppressor RH36 was regulating tick reproduction. Why did RH36 protein expressed uniquely in the salivary gland regulate tick reproduction? RH36 regulated positively the expression of vitellogenin in ovary, which indicated RH36 protein played an important role in the integration of nutrition and reproduction. According to proteomic analysis, heat shock protein 70 (HSP70) was significantly down-regulated in the immature ovary of post-engorged ticks. In addition, gene silencing of HSP70 not only inhibited tick blood-sucking and the expression of vitellogenin, but also increased tick death rate. These results suggested RH36 affected tick vitellogenin uptake and then regulated ovary cell maturation by modulating the expression of HSP70 protein, and finally controlled tick oviposition.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fangfang Wang
- Key Laboratory of Animal Parasitology of Ministry of Agriculture, Shanghai Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shanghai, China.,College of Life Science and Food Engineering, Hebei University of Engineering, Handan, China
| | - Yanan Wang
- Key Laboratory of Animal Parasitology of Ministry of Agriculture, Shanghai Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Guanghua Wang
- Key Laboratory of Animal Parasitology of Ministry of Agriculture, Shanghai Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Houshuang Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Animal Parasitology of Ministry of Agriculture, Shanghai Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Ceyan Kuang
- Key Laboratory of Animal Parasitology of Ministry of Agriculture, Shanghai Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Yongzhi Zhou
- Key Laboratory of Animal Parasitology of Ministry of Agriculture, Shanghai Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Jie Cao
- Key Laboratory of Animal Parasitology of Ministry of Agriculture, Shanghai Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shanghai, China
| | - Jinlin Zhou
- Key Laboratory of Animal Parasitology of Ministry of Agriculture, Shanghai Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shanghai, China
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18
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Quantitative Proteomics Identifies Metabolic Pathways Affected by Babesia Infection and Blood Feeding in the Sialoproteome of the Vector Rhipicephalus bursa. Vaccines (Basel) 2020; 8:vaccines8010091. [PMID: 32092882 PMCID: PMC7157752 DOI: 10.3390/vaccines8010091] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/27/2020] [Revised: 02/12/2020] [Accepted: 02/13/2020] [Indexed: 12/21/2022] Open
Abstract
The negative impact of ticks and tick-borne diseases on animals and human health is driving research to discover novel targets affecting both vectors and pathogens. The salivary glands are involved in feeding and pathogen transmission, thus are considered as a compelling target to focus research. In this study, proteomics approach was used to characterize Rhipicephalusbursa sialoproteome in response to Babesiaovis infection and blood feeding. Two potential tick protective antigens were identified and its influence in tick biological parameters and pathogen infection was evaluated. Results demonstrate that the R. bursa sialoproteome is highly affected by feeding but infection is well tolerated by tick cells. The combination of both stimuli shifts the previous scenario and a more evident pathogen manipulation can be suggested. Knockdown of ub2n led to a significative increase of infection in tick salivary glands but a brusque decrease in the progeny, revealing its importance in the cellular response to pathogen infection, which is worth pursuing in future studies. Additionally, an impact in the recovery rate of adults (62%), the egg production efficiency (45.75%), and the hatching rate (88.57 %) was detected. Building knowledge on vector and/or pathogen interplay bridges the identification of protective antigens and the development of novel control strategies.
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19
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De Novo RNA-seq and Functional Annotation of Haemaphysalis longicornis. Acta Parasitol 2019; 64:807-820. [PMID: 31418165 DOI: 10.2478/s11686-019-00103-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2019] [Accepted: 08/01/2019] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
PURPOSE Haemaphysalis longicornis (Neumann) is a hematophagous tick widely distributed in northern China. It not only causes enormous economic loss to animal husbandry, but also as a vector and reservoir of various zoonotic pathogens, it spreads natural focal diseases, such as severe fever with thrombocytopenia syndrome, seriously threatening human health. Lack of transcriptomic and genomic data from H. longicornis limits the study of this important medical vector. METHODS The engorged female H. longicornis from Gansu, China, was used for RNA extraction, de novo RNA-seq, functional annotation, and ORF prediction. RESULTS As a result, 53.09 million clean reads (98.88%) with a GC content of 54.29% were obtained. A total of 65,916 Unigenes were assembled, of which 34.59% (23,330) were successfully annotated. Of these Unigenes, 22,587 (34.27%) were annotated to species by NCBI non-redundant protein (nr). Ixodes scapularis, Limulus polyphemus, Parasteatoda tepidariorum, Stegodyphus mimosarum, and Metaseiulus occidentalis were the top BLAST hit species, accounting for 47.23%, 9.58%, 4.11%, 3.50%, and 2.69%, respectively. A total of 29,182 ORFs were predicted, and 35 complete ORFs for functional genes were identified, including ORFs involved in digestion (14), stress responses (8), anticoagulation (3), reproduction (3), antimicrobial (2), drug resistance (2), movement (2), autophagy (1), and immunity (1), respectively. The Unigene ORFs encoding cathepsin and heat shock proteins were further analyzed phylogenetically. CONCLUSION De novo RNA-seq and functional annotation of H. longicornis were successfully completed for the first time, providing a molecular data resource for further research on blood-sucking, pathogen transmission mechanisms, and effective prevention and control strategies.
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20
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Wang F, Gong H, Zhang H, Zhou Y, Cao J, Zhou J. Molecular characterization, tissue-specific expression, and RNA knockdown of the putative heat shock cognate 70 protein from Rhipicephalus haemaphysaloides. Parasitol Res 2019; 118:1363-1370. [PMID: 30891634 DOI: 10.1007/s00436-019-06258-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2018] [Accepted: 02/11/2019] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Heat shock cognate 70-kDa protein (RH-Hsc70) was identified from a cDNA library synthesized from the sialotranscriptomes of unfed and fed Rhipicephalus haemaphysaloides. The RH-Hsc70 open reading frame is 1950 bp long and encodes a protein that is 649 amino acids in length, with a predicted molecular weight of 71.1 kDa and a theoretical pI of 5.43. RH-Hsc70 exhibits 98% amino acid identity with Hsc70 in Haemaphysalis flava and 83% identity with Hsc70 in arthropods and mammals. RH-Hsc70 was mainly expressed in nymphs and adult ticks, not in larvae. Real-time quantitative PCR analysis indicated that RH-Hsc70 mRNA expression was induced by blood feeding in adult ticks. In addition, RH-Hsc70 gene expression was higher in the ovaries of fed adult ticks than that in the midguts, salivary glands, and fat bodies of unfed or fed adult ticks. RH-Hsc70 gene knockdown inhibited tick blood feeding, significantly decreased tick engorgement rate, and increased tick death rate. These data illustrate the importance of RH-Hsc70 in tick blood feeding and aging, which makes it a promising candidate for the development of anti-tick vaccines.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fangfang Wang
- Key Laboratory of Animal Parasitology of Ministry of Agriculture, Shanghai Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shanghai, 200241, China
- College of Life Science and Food Engineering, Hebei University of Engineering, Hanshan District, Handan, 056038, China
| | - Haiyan Gong
- Key Laboratory of Animal Parasitology of Ministry of Agriculture, Shanghai Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shanghai, 200241, China
| | - Houshuang Zhang
- Key Laboratory of Animal Parasitology of Ministry of Agriculture, Shanghai Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shanghai, 200241, China
| | - Yongzhi Zhou
- Key Laboratory of Animal Parasitology of Ministry of Agriculture, Shanghai Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shanghai, 200241, China
| | - Jie Cao
- Key Laboratory of Animal Parasitology of Ministry of Agriculture, Shanghai Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shanghai, 200241, China
| | - Jinlin Zhou
- Key Laboratory of Animal Parasitology of Ministry of Agriculture, Shanghai Veterinary Research Institute, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Shanghai, 200241, China.
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21
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Perrella NN, Fuzita FJ, Moreti R, Verhaert PDEM, Lopes AR. First characterization of fucosidases in spiders. ARCHIVES OF INSECT BIOCHEMISTRY AND PHYSIOLOGY 2018; 98:e21462. [PMID: 29600526 DOI: 10.1002/arch.21462] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
l-fucose is a constituent of glycoconjugates in different organisms. Fucosidases catalyze the removal of fucose residues, and have been correlated to different physiological and pathological processes, such as fertilization, cancer, fucosidosis, and digestion in molluscs and ticks. An α-l-fucosidase sequence was identified from the transcriptome and proteome from the midgut diverticula of the synanthropic spider Nephilingis cruentata. In this article, we describe the isolation of this α-l-fucosidase and the characterization of its activity using substrates and inhibitors demonstrating different specificities among fucosidases. The enzyme had a Km of 32 and 400 μM for 4-methylumbelliferyl α-l-fucopyranoside and 4-nitrophenyl α-l-fucopyranoside, respectively; and was unable to hydrolyze fucoidan. Nephilingis cruentata α-l-fucosidase was inhibited competitively by fucose and fuconojyrimycin. The fucosidase had two distinct pH optima even in the isolated form, due to oligomerization dependent on pH, as previously described to other fucosidases. Alignment and molecular homology modeling of the protein sequence with other fucosidases indicated that the active sites and catalytic residues were different, including residues involved in acid/base catalysis. Phylogenetic analysis showed, for the first time, gene-duplication events for fucosidases in Arachnida species. All these data reveal that studies on fucosidases in organisms distinct from bacteria, fungi, and humans are important.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natalia N Perrella
- Laboratory of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Instituto Butantan, São Paulo, Brazil
- Biotechnology Program, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Felipe J Fuzita
- Department of Biochemistry, Institute of Chemistry, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Rodrigo Moreti
- Laboratory of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Instituto Butantan, São Paulo, Brazil
- Biotechnology Program, University of São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
| | - Peter D E M Verhaert
- Laboratory of Analytical Biotechnology & Innovative Peptide Biology, Delft University of Technology, Delft, The Netherlands
| | - Adriana R Lopes
- Laboratory of Biochemistry and Biophysics, Instituto Butantan, São Paulo, Brazil
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22
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Niu D, Wang R, Zhao Y, Yang R, Hu L. De novo RNA-seq and functional annotation of Ornithonyssus bacoti. EXPERIMENTAL & APPLIED ACAROLOGY 2018; 75:191-208. [PMID: 29855753 DOI: 10.1007/s10493-018-0264-9] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/10/2017] [Accepted: 05/16/2018] [Indexed: 06/08/2023]
Abstract
Ornithonyssus bacoti (Hirst) (Acari: Macronyssidae) is a vector and reservoir of pathogens causing serious infectious diseases, such as epidemic hemorrhagic fever, endemic typhus, tularemia, and leptospirosis. Its genome and transcriptome data are lacking in public databases. In this study, total RNA was extracted from live O. bacoti to conduct RNA-seq, functional annotation, coding domain sequence (CDS) prediction and simple sequence repeats (SSRs) detection. The results showed that 65.8 million clean reads were generated and assembled into 72,185 unigenes, of which 49.4% were annotated by seven functional databases. 23,121 unigenes were annotated and assigned to 457 species by non-redundant protein sequence database. The BLAST top-two hit species were Metaseiulus occidentalis and Ixodes scapularis. The procedure detected 12,426 SSRs, of which tri- and di-nucleotides were the most abundant types and the representative motifs were AAT/ATT and AC/GT. 26,936 CDS were predicted with a mean length of 711 bp. 87 unigenes of 30 functional genes, which are usually involved in stress responses, drug resistance, movement, metabolism and allergy, were further identified by bioinformatics methods. The unigenes putatively encoding cytochrome P450 proteins were further analyzed phylogenetically. In conclusion, this study completed the RNA-seq and functional annotation of O. bacoti successfully, which provides reliable molecular data for its future studies of gene function and molecular markers.
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Affiliation(s)
- DongLing Niu
- Department of Pathogen Biology and Immunology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Xi'an Jiaotong University, 76 Yanta West Road, Xi'an, 710061, China
| | - RuiLing Wang
- Department of Pathogen Biology and Immunology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Xi'an Jiaotong University, 76 Yanta West Road, Xi'an, 710061, China
- Assisted Reproduction Center, Northwest Womens and Childrens Hospital, Xi'an, 710003, China
| | - YaE Zhao
- Department of Pathogen Biology and Immunology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Xi'an Jiaotong University, 76 Yanta West Road, Xi'an, 710061, China.
| | - Rui Yang
- Department of Pathogen Biology and Immunology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Xi'an Jiaotong University, 76 Yanta West Road, Xi'an, 710061, China
| | - Li Hu
- Department of Pathogen Biology and Immunology, School of Basic Medical Sciences, Xi'an Jiaotong University, 76 Yanta West Road, Xi'an, 710061, China
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23
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Antunes S, Couto J, Ferrolho J, Rodrigues F, Nobre J, Santos AS, Santos-Silva MM, de la Fuente J, Domingos A. Rhipicephalus bursa Sialotranscriptomic Response to Blood Feeding and Babesia ovis Infection: Identification of Candidate Protective Antigens. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2018; 8:116. [PMID: 29780749 PMCID: PMC5945973 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2018.00116] [Citation(s) in RCA: 22] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2017] [Accepted: 03/23/2018] [Indexed: 02/03/2023] Open
Abstract
Ticks are among the most prevalent blood-feeding arthropods, and they act as vectors and reservoirs for numerous pathogens. Sialotranscriptomic characterizations of tick responses to blood feeding and pathogen infections can offer new insights into the molecular interplay occurring at the tick-host-pathogen interface. In the present study, we aimed to identify and characterize Rhipicephalus bursa salivary gland (SG) genes that were differentially expressed in response to blood feeding and Babesia ovis infection. Our experimental approach consisted of RNA sequencing of SG from three different tick samples, fed-infected, fed-uninfected, and unfed-uninfected, for characterization and inter-comparison. Overall, 7,272 expressed sequence tags (ESTs) were constructed from unfed-uninfected, 13,819 ESTs from fed-uninfected, and 15,292 ESTs from fed-infected ticks. Two catalogs of transcripts that were differentially expressed in response to blood feeding and B. ovis infection were produced. Four genes coding for a putative vitellogenin-3, lachesin, a glycine rich protein, and a secreted cement protein were selected for RNA interference functional studies. A reduction of 92, 65, and 51% was observed in vitellogenin-3, secreted cement, and lachesin mRNA levels in SG, respectively. The vitellogenin-3 knockdown led to increased tick mortality, with 77% of ticks dying post-infestation. The reduction of the secreted cement protein-mRNA levels resulted in 46% of ticks being incapable of correctly attaching to the host and significantly lower female weights post-feeding in comparison to the control group. The lachesin knockdown resulted in a 70% reduction of the levels associated with B. ovis infection in R. bursa SG and 70% mortality. These results improved our understanding of the role of tick SG genes in Babesia infection/proliferation and tick feeding. Moreover, lachesin, vitellogenin-3, and secreted cement proteins were validated as candidate protective antigens for the development of novel tick and tick-borne disease control measures.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sandra Antunes
- Global Health and Tropical Medicine, Instituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal.,Instituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Joana Couto
- Global Health and Tropical Medicine, Instituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal.,Instituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Joana Ferrolho
- Global Health and Tropical Medicine, Instituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal.,Instituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - Fábio Rodrigues
- Instituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
| | - João Nobre
- Instituto Nacional de Investigação Agrária e Veterinária, Pólo de Santarém, Vale de Santarém, Portugal
| | - Ana S Santos
- Instituto Nacional de Saúde Doutor Ricardo Jorge, Centro de Estudos de Vectores e Doenças Infecciosas Dr. Francisco Cambournac (CEVDI/INSA), Águas de Moura, Portugal
| | - M Margarida Santos-Silva
- Instituto Nacional de Saúde Doutor Ricardo Jorge, Centro de Estudos de Vectores e Doenças Infecciosas Dr. Francisco Cambournac (CEVDI/INSA), Águas de Moura, Portugal
| | - José de la Fuente
- SaBio, Instituto de Investigación en Recursos Cinegéticos IREC-CSIC-UCLM-JCCM, Ciudad Real, Spain.,Department of Veterinary Pathobiology, Center for Veterinary Health Sciences, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, United States
| | - Ana Domingos
- Global Health and Tropical Medicine, Instituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal.,Instituto de Higiene e Medicina Tropical, Universidade Nova de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
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24
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Murfin KE, Fikrig E. Tick Bioactive Molecules as Novel Therapeutics: Beyond Vaccine Targets. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2017. [PMID: 28634573 PMCID: PMC5459892 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2017.00222] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Affiliation(s)
- Kristen E Murfin
- Section of Infectious Disease, Department of Internal Medicine, Yale University School of MedicineNew Haven, CT, United States
| | - Erol Fikrig
- Section of Infectious Disease, Department of Internal Medicine, Yale University School of MedicineNew Haven, CT, United States.,Howard Hughes Medical InstituteChevy Chase, MD, United States.,Department of Microbial Pathogenesis, Yale UniversityNew Haven, CT, United States
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25
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Chmelař J, Kotál J, Langhansová H, Kotsyfakis M. Protease Inhibitors in Tick Saliva: The Role of Serpins and Cystatins in Tick-host-Pathogen Interaction. Front Cell Infect Microbiol 2017; 7:216. [PMID: 28611951 PMCID: PMC5447049 DOI: 10.3389/fcimb.2017.00216] [Citation(s) in RCA: 71] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/25/2017] [Accepted: 05/11/2017] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
The publication of the first tick sialome (salivary gland transcriptome) heralded a new era of research of tick protease inhibitors, which represent important constituents of the proteins secreted via tick saliva into the host. Three major groups of protease inhibitors are secreted into saliva: Kunitz inhibitors, serpins, and cystatins. Kunitz inhibitors are anti-hemostatic agents and tens of proteins with one or more Kunitz domains are known to block host coagulation and/or platelet aggregation. Serpins and cystatins are also anti-hemostatic effectors, but intriguingly, from the translational perspective, also act as pluripotent modulators of the host immune system. Here we focus especially on this latter aspect of protease inhibition by ticks and describe the current knowledge and data on secreted salivary serpins and cystatins and their role in tick-host-pathogen interaction triad. We also discuss the potential therapeutic use of tick protease inhibitors.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jindřich Chmelař
- Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia in České BudějoviceČeské Budějovice, Czechia
| | - Jan Kotál
- Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia in České BudějoviceČeské Budějovice, Czechia.,Institute of Parasitology, Biology Center, Czech Academy of SciencesČeské Budějovice, Czechia
| | - Helena Langhansová
- Faculty of Science, University of South Bohemia in České BudějoviceČeské Budějovice, Czechia.,Institute of Parasitology, Biology Center, Czech Academy of SciencesČeské Budějovice, Czechia
| | - Michail Kotsyfakis
- Institute of Parasitology, Biology Center, Czech Academy of SciencesČeské Budějovice, Czechia
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