Activation of the tick Toll pathway to control infection of Ixodes ricinus by the apicomplexan parasite Babesia microti
The result's identifiers
Result code in IS VaVaI
<a href="https://www.isvavai.cz/riv?ss=detail&h=RIV%2F60077344%3A_____%2F24%3A00603130" target="_blank" >RIV/60077344:_____/24:00603130 - isvavai.cz</a>
Alternative codes found
RIV/60076658:12310/24:43908697
Result on the web
<a href="https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.ppat.1012743" target="_blank" >https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.ppat.1012743</a>
DOI - Digital Object Identifier
<a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.ppat.1012743" target="_blank" >10.1371/journal.ppat.1012743</a>
Alternative languages
Result language
angličtina
Original language name
Activation of the tick Toll pathway to control infection of Ixodes ricinus by the apicomplexan parasite Babesia microti
Original language description
The vector competence of blood-feeding arthropods is influenced by the interaction between pathogens and the immune system of the vector. The Toll and IMD (immune deficiency) signaling pathways play a key role in the regulation of innate immunity in both the Drosophila model and blood-feeding insects. However, in ticks (chelicerates), immune determination for pathogen acquisition and transmission has not yet been fully explored. Here, we have mapped homologs of insect Toll and IMD pathways in the European tick Ixodes ricinus, an important vector of human and animal diseases. We show that most genes of the Toll pathway are well conserved, whereas the IMD pathway has been greatly reduced. We therefore investigated the functions of the individual components of the tick Toll pathway and found that, unlike in Drosophila, it was specifically activated by Gram-negative bacteria. The activation of pathway induced the expression of defensin (defIR), the first identified downstream effector gene of the tick Toll pathway. Borrelia, an atypical bacterium and causative agent of Lyme borreliosis, bypassed Toll-mediated recognition in I. ricinus and also resisted systemic effector molecules when the Toll pathway was activated by silencing its repressor cactus via RNA interference. Babesia, an apicomplexan parasite, also avoided Toll-mediated recognition. Strikingly, unlike Borrelia, the number of Babesia parasites reaching the salivary glands during tick infection was significantly reduced by knocking down cactus. The simultaneous silencing of cactus and dorsal resulted in greater infections and underscored the importance of tick immunity in regulating parasite infections in these important disease vectors.
Czech name
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Czech description
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Classification
Type
J<sub>imp</sub> - Article in a specialist periodical, which is included in the Web of Science database
CEP classification
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OECD FORD branch
10608 - Biochemistry and molecular biology
Result continuities
Project
Result was created during the realization of more than one project. More information in the Projects tab.
Continuities
I - Institucionalni podpora na dlouhodoby koncepcni rozvoj vyzkumne organizace
Others
Publication year
2024
Confidentiality
S - Úplné a pravdivé údaje o projektu nepodléhají ochraně podle zvláštních právních předpisů
Data specific for result type
Name of the periodical
PLoS Pathogens
ISSN
1553-7366
e-ISSN
1553-7374
Volume of the periodical
20
Issue of the periodical within the volume
12
Country of publishing house
US - UNITED STATES
Number of pages
19
Pages from-to
e1012743
UT code for WoS article
001378234000002
EID of the result in the Scopus database
2-s2.0-85212667209