• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.55 no.2
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• pp.193-196
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• 2017

This study investigated the development characteristics of Dermacentor everestianus under laboratory conditions. The time taken for D. everestianus to complete the whole life cycle was 110.2 days on average, and the average developmental durations of larvae and nymphs were 17.1 days and 29.5 days, respectively. The summation of the prefeeding, feeding, and preoviposition periods of females was 17.8 days, and the oviposition and egg incubation lasted for 18.1 days and 27.7 days, respectively. A highly positive correlation was observed between the weight of engorged female and the number of egg mass laid (r=0.947). The reproductive efficiency index and the reproductive fitness index were 7.1 and 6.1, respectively.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.53 no.6
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• pp.789-793
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• 2015

In order to explore tick proteins as potential targets for further developing vaccine against ticks, the total proteins of unfed female Dermacentor silvarum were screened with anti-D. silvarum serum produced from rabbits. The results of western blot showed that 3 antigenic proteins of about 100, 68, and 52 kDa were detected by polyclonal antibodies, which means that they probably have immunogenicity. Then, unfed female tick proteins were separated by 12% SDS-PAGE, and target proteins (100, 68, and 52 kDa) were cut and analyzed by LC-MS/MS, respectively. The comparative results of peptide sequences showed that they might be vitellogenin (Vg), heat shock protein 60 (Hsp60), and fructose-1, 6-bisphosphate aldolase (FBA), respectively. These data will lay the foundation for the further validation of antigenic proteins to prevent infestation and diseases transmitted by D. silvarum.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.62 no.1
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• pp.117-130
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• 2024

Ticks host different pathogens as endosymbiont and nonpathogenic microorganisms and play an important role in reproductive fitness and nutrient provision. However, the bacterial microbiomes of white-tailed deer ticks have received minimal attention. This study aimed to examine the bacterial microbiome of ticks collected from Odocoileus virginianus on the Mexico-United States border to assess differences in microbiome diversity in ticks of different species, sexes, and localities. Five different tick species were collected: Rhipicephalus microplus, Dermacentor nitens, Otobius megnini, Amblyomma cajennense, and A. maculatum. The tick microbiomes were analyzed using next-generation sequencing. Among all tick species, the most predominant phylum was Proteobacteria, followed by Actinobacteria and Firmicutes. The ticks from Tamaulipas and Nuevo León presented the highest bacterial species diversity. Acinetobacter johnsonii and A. lwoffii were the common bacterial species in the microbiome of all ticks, Coxiella were present in R. microplus, and Dermacentor nitens also exhibited a Francisella-like endosymbiont. The microbiome of most females in D. nitens was less diverse than that of males, whereas R. microplus occurs in females, suggesting that microbiome diversity is influenced by sex. In the bacterial communities of A. maculatum and O. megnini, Candidatus Midichloria massiliensis, and Candidatus Endoecteinascidia fumentensis were the most predominant endosymbionts. These results constitute the initial report on these bacteria, and this is also the first study to characterize the microbiome of O. megnini.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.52 no.1
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• pp.93-97
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• 2014

Subolesin (4D8), the ortholog of insect akirins, is a highly conserved protective antigen and thus has the potential for development of a broad-spectrum vaccine against ticks and mosquitoes. To date, no protective antigens have been characterized nor tested as candidate vaccines against Dermacentor silvarum bites and transmission of associated pathogens. In this study, we cloned the open reading frame (ORF) of D. silvarum 4D8 cDNA (Ds4D8), which consisted of 498 bp encoding 165 amino acid residues. The results of sequence alignments and phylogenetic analysis demonstrated that D. silvarum 4D8 (Ds4D8) is highly conserved showing more than 81% identity of amino acid sequences with those of other hard ticks. Additionally, Ds4D8 containing restriction sites was ligated into the pET-32(a+) expression vector and the recombinant plasmid was transformed into Escherichia coli rosetta. The recombinant Ds4D8 (rDs4D8) was induced by isopropyl ${\beta}$-D-thiogalactopyranoside (IPTG) and purified using Ni affinity chromatography. The SDS-PAGE results showed that the molecular weight of rDs4D8 was 40 kDa, which was consistent with the expected molecular mass considering 22 kDa histidine-tagged thioredoxin (TRX) protein from the expression vector. Western blot results showed that rabbit anti-D. silvarum serum recognized the expressed rDs4D8, suggesting an immune response against rDs4D8. These results provided the basis for developing a candidate vaccine against D. silvarum ticks and transmission of associated pathogens.

• Korean Journal of Veterinary Research
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• v.24 no.2
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• pp.201-211
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• 1984

Rhipicephilus sanguineus (Latreille 1806) the brown dog tick, is one of the most widely distributed ixodid ticks in the world, however, there was no report for the discovery of the species in Korea. Specimens unfed or partly fed were collected from the dogs rearing in the livestock farms and the pastures near the farms located in Kyunggi-Do, Chungchong-Namdo, Cholla-Pukdo and Cheju-Do, in summer seasons during 1981 to 1984. The specimens were examined at the Institute of Veterinary Research in Anyang and were identified as R. sanguineus. The morphological characteristics observed by means of the scanning electron microscope were presented with some SEM microphotographs. As. R. sanguineus is firstly discovered to occur in Korea, a total of 20 species of ticks belonging to E: genera, such as, Argas, Amblyomma, Boophilus, Dermacentor, Haemaphysalis, Hyalomma, Ixodes and Rhipicephilus, has now been recorded.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.45 no.4
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• pp.307-310
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• 2007

A survey was carried out to investigate the prevalence of hard tick species (Acari: Ixodidae) on cattle in Mazandaran province, Iran. A total of 953 ticks were collected from 86 infested cattle during activating seasons of ticks during 2004-2005. Nine species were identified: Boophilus annulatus (51.3%), Rhipicephalus bursa (16.8%), Haemaphysalis punctata (6.3%), Ixodes ricinus (6.8%), Hyalomma marginatum (12.5%), Hyalomma anatolicum excavatum (5.2%), Hyalomma asiaticum (0.6%), Hyalomma detritum (0.2 %), and Dermacentor spp. (0.1%). The results show that Boophilus annulatus, Rhipicephalus bursa, and Hyalomma species are dominant tick species in the surveyed area.

• Parasites, Hosts and Diseases
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• v.59 no.1
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• pp.103-108
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• 2021

To date, there is no report on the genetic diversity of ticks in these regions. A total of 370 representative ticks from the south and east regions of Kazakhstan (SERK) and Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR) were selected for molecular comparison. A fragment of the mitochondrial cytochrome c oxidase subunit I (cox1) gene, ranging from 631 bp to 889 bp, was used to analyze genetic diversity among these ticks. Phylogenetic analyses indicated 7 tick species including Hyalomma asiaticum, Hyalomma detritum, Hyalomma anatolicum, Dermacentor marginatus, Rhipicephalus sanguineus, Rhipicephalus turanicus and Haemaphysalis erinacei from the SERK clustered together with conspecific ticks from the XUAR. The network diagram of haplotypes showed that i) Hy. asiaticum from Almaty and Kyzylorda Oblasts together with that from Yuli County of XUAR constituted haplogroup H-2, and the lineage from Chimkent City of South Kazakhstan was newly evolved; and ii) the R. turanicus ticks sampled in Israel, Almaty, South Kazakhstan, Usu City, Ulugqat and Baicheng Counties of XUAR were derivated from an old lineage in Alataw City of XUAR. These findings indicate that: i) Hy. asiaticum, R. turanicus and Ha. erinacei shared genetic similarities between the SERK and XUAR; and ii) Hy. marginatum and D. reticulatus show differences in their evolution.