Vector-host interactions in disease transmission.

Journal article

Tick-borne spirochetes include borreliae that cause Lyme disease and relapsing fever in humans. They survive in a triangle of parasitic interactions between the spirochete and its vertebrate host, the spirochete and its tick vector, and the host and the tick. Until recently, the significance of vector-host interactions in the transmission of arthropod-borne disease agents has been overlooked. However, there is now compelling evidence that the pharmacological activity of tick saliva can have a profound effect on pathogen transmission both from infected tick to uninfected host, and from infected host to uninfected tick. The salivary glands of ticks provide a pharmacopoeia of anti-inflammatory, anti-haemostatic and anti-immune molecules. These include bioactive proteins that control histamine, bind immunoglobulins, and inhibit the alternative complement cascade. The effect of these molecules is to provide a privileged site at the tick-host interface in which borreliae and other tick-borne pathogens are sheltered from the normal innate and acquired host immune mechanisms that combat infections. Understanding the key events at the tick vector-host interface, that promote spirochete infection and transmission, will provide a better understanding of the epidemiology and ecology of these important human pathogens.

Authors: Nuttall, P; Paesen, G; Lawrie, C; Wang, H

• Publication status: Published
• Journal: Journal of molecular microbiology and biotechnology
• Volume: 2
• Issue: 4
• Pages: 381-386
• Publication date: 2000-10-01
• EISSN: 1660-2412
• ISSN: 1464-1801
• Language: English
• Keywords: Lyme Disease; Borrelia; Humans; Relapsing Fever; Animals; Insect Vectors; Tick-Borne Diseases; Ticks; Borrelia Infections