Ticks and tick-borne diseases are a growing burden worldwide and vaccines are effective control interventions. Vaccine formulations with tick antigens such as BM86/BM95 (BM) and Subolesin (SUB) have shown reduction in tick fitness and infestation in immunized hosts. However, antigen combination is a challenging approach to improve vaccine efficacy (E) against multiple tick species. Herein, in silico and in music algorithms were integrated to model BM-SUB protein-protein interactions to apply a quantum vaccinology approach for combining protective epitopes or immunological quantum in the chimeric antigen Q38-95. Cattle immunized with Q38-95 and infested with African blue tick Rhipicephalus decoloratus showed an 82% E similar to BM86 and higher than SUB. The immune mechanisms activated in cattle in response to vaccination with Q38-95 were mediated by anti-BM/SUB antibodies that interfered with BM-SUB interactions and through activation of other innate and adaptive immune pathways. The results support modelling protein-protein interactions affecting E to identify and combine candidate protective epitopes in chimeric antigens.

• MeSH
• antigeny * imunologie   chemie   MeSH
• epitopy * imunologie   chemie   MeSH
• infestace klíšťaty * prevence a kontrola   imunologie   veterinární   MeSH
• Rhipicephalus imunologie   MeSH
• skot MeSH
• vakcíny * imunologie   MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Check Tag
• skot MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Publikační typ
• časopisecké články MeSH
• Názvy látek
• antigeny * MeSH
• epitopy * MeSH
• vakcíny * MeSH