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.

• Keywords
• Bacterial transmission, Blood-feeding, Comparative proteomics, Immune modulation, Protective antigens, TIBOLA, Tick vector,
• MeSH
• Dermacentor genetics   microbiology   MeSH
• DNA, Bacterial MeSH
• Disease Vectors MeSH
• Tick-Borne Diseases microbiology   transmission   MeSH
• Polymerase Chain Reaction MeSH
• Proteomics * MeSH
• Rickettsia genetics   pathogenicity   MeSH
• Rickettsia Infections transmission   MeSH
• Animals MeSH
• Check Tag
• Female MeSH
• Animals MeSH
• Publication type
• Journal Article MeSH
• Comparative Study MeSH
• Geographicals
• Slovakia MeSH
• Names of Substances
• DNA, Bacterial MeSH