BACKGROUND: Tick-borne rickettsial diseases are caused by pathogens acquired from hard ticks. In particular, Rickettsia slovaca, a zoonotic infectious bacterium causing tick-borne lymphadenopathy (TIBOLA), is transmitted by the vectors Dermacentor spp. that can be found all over Europe. Although recent studies point out the extreme complexity of bacteria-induced effects in these blood-feeding vectors, the knowledge of individual molecules involved in the preservation and transmission of the pathogen is still limited. System biology tools, including proteomics, may contribute greatly to the understanding of pathogen-tick-host interactions. METHODS: Herein, we performed a comparative proteomics study of the tick vector Dermacentor reticulatus that was experimentally infected with the endosymbiotic bacterium R. slovaca. Rickettsia-free ticks, collected in the southern region of Slovakia, were infected with the bacterium by a capillary tube-feeding system, and the dynamics of infection was assessed by quantitative PCR method after 5, 10, 15 and 27 days. RESULTS: At the stage of controlled proliferation (at 27 dpi), 33 (from 481 profiled) differentially abundant protein spots were detected on a two-dimensional gel. From the aforementioned protein spots, 21 were successfully identified by tandem mass spectrometry. CONCLUSIONS: Although a few discovered proteins were described as having structural or housekeeping functions, the vast majority of the affected proteins were suggested to be essential for tick attachment and feeding on the host, host immune system evasion and defensive response modulation to ensure successful pathogen transmission.

• Klíčová slova
• Bacterial transmission, Blood-feeding, Comparative proteomics, Immune modulation, Protective antigens, TIBOLA, Tick vector,
• MeSH
• Dermacentor genetika   mikrobiologie   MeSH
• DNA bakterií MeSH
• infekce přenášené vektorem MeSH
• nemoci přenášené klíšťaty mikrobiologie   přenos   MeSH
• polymerázová řetězová reakce MeSH
• proteomika * MeSH
• Rickettsia genetika   patogenita   MeSH
• rickettsiové infekce přenos   MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Check Tag
• ženské pohlaví MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• srovnávací studie MeSH
• Geografické názvy
• Slovenská republika MeSH
• Názvy látek
• DNA bakterií MeSH

Hematophagous arthropods are responsible for the transmission of a variety of pathogens that cause disease in humans and animals. Ticks of the Ixodes ricinus complex are vectors for some of the most frequently occurring human tick-borne diseases, particularly Lyme borreliosis and tick-borne encephalitis virus (TBEV). The search for vaccines against these diseases is ongoing. Efforts during the last few decades have primarily focused on understanding the biology of the transmitted viruses, bacteria and protozoans, with the goal of identifying targets for intervention. Successful vaccines have been developed against TBEV and Lyme borreliosis, although the latter is no longer available for humans. More recently, the focus of intervention has shifted back to where it was initially being studied which is the vector. State of the art technologies are being used for the identification of potential vaccine candidates for anti-tick vaccines that could be used either in humans or animals. The study of the interrelationship between ticks and the pathogens they transmit, including mechanisms of acquisition, persistence and transmission have come to the fore, as this knowledge may lead to the identification of critical elements of the pathogens' life-cycle that could be targeted by vaccines. Here, we review the status of our current knowledge on the triangular relationships between ticks, the pathogens they carry and the mammalian hosts, as well as methods that are being used to identify anti-tick vaccine candidates that can prevent the transmission of tick-borne pathogens.

• Klíčová slova
• Anaplasma, Babesia, Borrelia, Ixodes, Midgut, Rickettsia, Saliva, TBEV, Tick, Vaccine,
• MeSH
• Borrelia MeSH
• infekce přenášené vektorem MeSH
• klíště mikrobiologie   virologie   MeSH
• klíšťová encefalitida prevence a kontrola   MeSH
• kousnutí klíštětem prevence a kontrola   MeSH
• lidé MeSH
• lymeská nemoc prevence a kontrola   MeSH
• nemoci přenášené klíšťaty prevence a kontrola   přenos   MeSH
• proteiny členovců imunologie   MeSH
• sliny MeSH
• vakcíny imunologie   MeSH
• viry klíšťové encefalitidy MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Check Tag
• lidé MeSH
• mužské pohlaví MeSH
• ženské pohlaví MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• přehledy MeSH
• Názvy látek
• proteiny členovců MeSH
• vakcíny MeSH