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Dermacentor andersoni , known as the Rocky Mountain wood tick, is found in the western United States and transmits pathogens that cause diseases of veterinary and public health importance including Rocky Mountain spotted fever, tularemia, Colorado tick fever and bovine anaplasmosis. Tick saliva is known to modulate both innate and acquired immune responses, enabling ticks to feed for several days without detection. During feeding ticks subvert host defences such as hemostasis and inflammation, which would otherwise result in coagulation, wound repair and rejection of the tick. Molecular characterization of the proteins and pharmacological molecules secreted in tick saliva offers an opportunity to develop tick vaccines as an alternative to the use of acaricides, as well as new anti-inflammatory drugs. We performed proteomics informed by transcriptomics to identify D. andersoni saliva proteins that are secreted during feeding. The transcript data generated a database of 21,797 consensus sequences, which we used to identify 677 proteins secreted in the saliva of D. andersoni ticks fed for 2 and 5 days, following proteomic investigations of whole saliva using mass spectrometry. Salivary gland transcript levels of unfed ticks were compared with 2 and 5 day fed ticks to identify genes upregulated early during tick feeding. We cross-referenced the proteomic data with the transcriptomic data to identify 157 proteins of interest for immunomodulation and blood feeding. Proteins of unknown function as well as known immunomodulators were identified. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Rapid diagnostic tests based on histidine-rich protein 2 (HRP2) detection are the primary tools used to detect Plasmodium falciparum malaria infections. Recent conflicting reports call into question whether α-HRP2 antibodies are present in human host circulation and if resulting immune complexes could interfere with HRP2 detection on malaria RDTs. This study sought to determine the prevalence of immune-complexed HRP2 in a low-transmission region of Southern Zambia. Methods: An ELISA was used to quantify HRP2 in patient sample DBS extracts before and after heat-based immune complex dissociation. A pull-down assay reliant on proteins A, G, and L was developed and applied for IgG and IgM capture and subsequent immunoprecipitation of any HRP2 present in immune complexed form. A total of 104 patient samples were evaluated using both methods. Results: Immune-complexed HRP2 was detectable in 17% (18/104) of all samples evaluated and 70% (16/23) of HRP2-positive samples. A majority of the patients with samples containing immune-complexed HRP2 had P. falciparum infections (11/18) and were also positive for free HRP2 (16/18). For 72% (13/18) of patients with immune-complexed HRP2, less than 10% of the total HRP2 present was in immune-complexed form. For the remaining samples, a large proportion (≥ 20%) of total HRP2 was complexed with α-HRP2 antibodies. Conclusions: Endogenous α-HRP2 antibodies form immune complexes with HRP2 in the symptomatic patient population of a low-transmission area in rural Southern Zambia. For the majority of patients, the percentage of HRP2 in immune complexes is low and does not affect HRP2-based malaria diagnosis. However, for some patients, a significant portion of the total HRP2 was in immune-complexed form. Future studies investigating the prevalence and proportion of immune-complexed HRP2 in asymptomatic individuals with low HRP2 levels will be required to assess whether α-HRP2 antibodies affect HRP2 detection for this portion of the transmission reservoir. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Dried blood spots are commonly used for sample collection in clinical and non-clinical settings. This method is simple, and biomolecules in the samples remain stable for months at room temperature. In the field, blood samples for the study and diagnosis of malaria are often collected on dried blood spot cards, so development of a biomarker extraction and analysis method is needed. Methods: A simple extraction procedure for the malarial biomarker Plasmodium falciparum histidine-rich protein 2 (HRP2) from dried blood spots was optimized to achieve maximum extraction efficiency. This method was used to assess the stability of HRP2 in dried blood spots. Furthermore, 328 patient samples made available from rural Zambia were analysed for HRP2 using the developed method. These samples were collected at the initial administration of artemisinin-based combination therapy and at several points following treatment. Results: An average extraction efficiency of 70% HRP2 with a low picomolar detection limit was achieved. In specific storage conditions HRP2 was found to be stable in dried blood spots for at least 6 months. Analysis of patient samples showed the method to have a sensitivity of 94% and a specificity of 89% when compared with microscopy, and trends in HRP2 clearance after treatment were observed. Conclusions: The dried blood spot ELISA for HRP2 was found to be sensitive, specific and accurate. The method was effectively used to assess biomarker clearance characteristics in patient samples, which prove it to be ideal for gaining further insight into the disease and epidemiological applications. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We have developed a rapid magnetic microparticle-based detection strategy for malarial biomarkers Plasmodium lactate dehydrogenase ( p LDH) and Plasmodium falciparum histidine-rich protein II ( Pf HRPII). In this assay, magnetic particles functionalized with antibodies specific for p LDH and Pf HRPII as well as detection antibodies with distinct enzymes for each biomarker are added to parasitized lysed blood samples. Sandwich complexes for p LDH and Pf HRPII form on the surface of the magnetic beads, which are washed and sequentially re-suspended in detection enzyme substrate for each antigen. The developed simultaneous capture and sequential detection (SCSD) assay detects both biomarkers in samples as low as 2.0 parasites/µl, an order of magnitude below commercially available ELISA kits, has a total incubation time of 35 min, and was found to be reproducible between users over time. This assay provides a simple and efficient alternative to traditional 96-well plate ELISAs, which take 5–8 h to complete and are limited to one analyte. Further, the modularity of the magnetic bead-based SCSD ELISA format could serve as a platform for application to other diseases for which multi-biomarker detection is advantageous. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]