학술논문
Genetic diversity of the ATAQ gene in Rhipicephalus microplus collected in Mexico and implications as anti-tick vaccine
Genetics, Evolution, and Phylogeny - Short Communication
Genetics, Evolution, and Phylogeny - Short Communication
Document Type
Academic Journal
Author
Source
Parasitology Research. October 2020, Vol. 119 Issue 10, p3523, 7 p.
Subject
Language
English
ISSN
0932-0113
Abstract
Author(s): Sarah Melissa Lugo-Caro del Castillo [sup.1], Rubén Hernández-Ortiz [sup.2], Ninnet Gómez-Romero [sup.3], Moisés Martínez-Velázquez [sup.4], Edgar Castro-Saines [sup.2], Rodolfo Lagunes-Quintanilla [sup.2] Author Affiliations: (1) grid.464707.6, 0000 0004 0369 4159, [...]
The cattle tick Rhipicephalus microplus has a large impact on cattle production due to its bloodsucking habit and transmission of pathogens that cause babesiosis and anaplasmosis. Application of acaricides constitutes the major control method but is often accompanied by serious drawbacks, including environmental contamination and an increase in acaricide resistance by ticks. The recent development of anti-tick vaccines has provided positive results in the post-genomic era, owing to the rise of reverse vaccinological and bioinformatics approaches to analyze and identify candidate protective antigens for use against ticks. The ATAQ protein is considered a novel antigen for the control of the cattle tick R. microplus; it is expressed in midguts and Malpighian tubules of all ticks from the Rhipicephalus genus. However, genetic diversity studies are required. Here, the ATAQ gene was sequenced of seven R. microplus tick isolates from different regions in Mexico to understand the genetic diversity. The results showed that sequence identity among the Mexican isolates ranged between 98 and 100% and 97.8-100% at the nucleotide and protein levels, respectively. Alignments of deduced amino acid sequences from different R. microplus ATAQ isolates in Mexico revealed a high degree of conservation. However, the Mexican isolates differed from the R. microplus 'Mozambique' strain, at 20 amino acid residues. Finally, the analysis of more R. microplus isolates, and possibly of other Rhipicephalus species, to determine the genetic diversity in the ATAQ locus is essential to suggest this antigen as a vaccine candidate that might control tick infestations.
The cattle tick Rhipicephalus microplus has a large impact on cattle production due to its bloodsucking habit and transmission of pathogens that cause babesiosis and anaplasmosis. Application of acaricides constitutes the major control method but is often accompanied by serious drawbacks, including environmental contamination and an increase in acaricide resistance by ticks. The recent development of anti-tick vaccines has provided positive results in the post-genomic era, owing to the rise of reverse vaccinological and bioinformatics approaches to analyze and identify candidate protective antigens for use against ticks. The ATAQ protein is considered a novel antigen for the control of the cattle tick R. microplus; it is expressed in midguts and Malpighian tubules of all ticks from the Rhipicephalus genus. However, genetic diversity studies are required. Here, the ATAQ gene was sequenced of seven R. microplus tick isolates from different regions in Mexico to understand the genetic diversity. The results showed that sequence identity among the Mexican isolates ranged between 98 and 100% and 97.8-100% at the nucleotide and protein levels, respectively. Alignments of deduced amino acid sequences from different R. microplus ATAQ isolates in Mexico revealed a high degree of conservation. However, the Mexican isolates differed from the R. microplus 'Mozambique' strain, at 20 amino acid residues. Finally, the analysis of more R. microplus isolates, and possibly of other Rhipicephalus species, to determine the genetic diversity in the ATAQ locus is essential to suggest this antigen as a vaccine candidate that might control tick infestations.