Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 16, 2025
07:21
Tick Microbiome Characterization by Next-Generation 16S rRNA Amplicon Sequencing
Published on: August 25, 2018
12.9K
PERK-mediated antioxidant response is key for pathogen persistence in ticks
Kristin L Rosche1, Joanna Hurtado1,2, Elis A Fisk1
1Department of Veterinary Microbiology and Pathology, Washington State University , Pullman, Washington, USA.
Msphere
|September 21, 2023
Summary
Tick-borne pathogens like Lyme disease bacteria exploit a cellular stress pathway (PERK) to persist within ticks. This pathway activates antioxidant responses, aiding pathogen survival and transmission.
Area of Science:
- Vector-borne diseases
- Tick-pathogen interactions
- Innate immunity
Background:
- Tick immunity shapes pathogen interactions, but mechanisms of pathogen persistence are unclear.
- Tick-borne pathogens must colonize and survive within the arthropod vector.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how Borrelia burgdorferi and Anaplasma phagocytophilum persist in Ixodes ticks despite immune pressure.
- To identify the molecular mechanisms enabling pathogen survival within the tick vector.
Main Methods:
- Pharmacological inhibition and RNA interference (RNAi) of the PERK pathway in Ixodes ticks.
- In vivo RNAi to assess pathogen load after bloodmeal and molting.
- Analysis of PERK pathway-regulated targets, including Nrf2.
- Gene silencing of nrf2 and assessment of reactive oxygen/nitrogen species.
Main Results:
- Blocking the PERK pathway significantly reduced Borrelia burgdorferi and Anaplasma phagocytophilum numbers in ticks.
- In vivo RNAi of PERK decreased pathogen colonization and survival through molting.
- Pathogens induced the Nrf2 antioxidant response via the PERK pathway.
- Tick cells deficient in PERK or Nrf2 showed increased reactive oxygen/nitrogen species and reduced microbial survival.
Conclusions:
- The Ixodes PERK pathway is activated by transmissible microbes, facilitating pathogen persistence.
- This pathway potentiates an Nrf2-regulated antioxidant environment, crucial for pathogen survival.
- Interfering with the PERK-Nrf2 axis significantly reduces pathogen numbers in ticks.
Related Concept Videos
01:31Defense Against Bacterial Pathogens
1.4K
The human immune system is a complex network of cells, tissues, and organs that work together to defend the body against bacterial infections. It consists of various immune cells, each playing a specific role in the defense mechanism.
Phagocytes
Phagocytes are the frontline soldiers of the immune system. They include neutrophils and macrophages. Neutrophils are the most abundant type of white blood cell and are quickly mobilized to the site of infection. Macrophages are larger cells that patrol...
Phagocytes
Phagocytes are the frontline soldiers of the immune system. They include neutrophils and macrophages. Neutrophils are the most abundant type of white blood cell and are quickly mobilized to the site of infection. Macrophages are larger cells that patrol...
1.4K
01:16Transduction
32
Among the three main modes of HGT—transformation, conjugation, and transduction—transduction is unique in that it is mediated by bacteriophages, or bacterial viruses.Transduction occurs in two ways. Generalized transduction occurs during the lytic cycle of a bacteriophage infection. In this process, bacteriophages infect bacterial cells, replicate within them, and ultimately cause cell lysis, releasing newly assembled virions. Occasionally, random fragments of the bacterial genome...
32
01:23Stringent Response in E. coli
28
Bacterial growth is closely tied to nutrient availability, with cells proliferating exponentially under favorable conditions and entering a stationary phase when resources become scarce. This transition is mediated by a regulatory mechanism known as the stringent response, which allows bacteria to adapt to nutrient deprivation by modulating gene expression and metabolic activity.During nutrient scarcity, intracellular amino acid levels decline. It results in the accumulation of uncharged tRNAs...
28
02:26Defenses Against Pathogens and Herbivores
23.8K
Plants present a rich source of nutrients for many organisms, making it a target for herbivores and infectious agents. Plants, though lacking a proper immune system, have developed an array of constitutive and inducible defenses to fend off these attacks.
23.8K
02:26NF-κB-dependent Signaling Pathway
7.5K
The transcription factor NF-κB was discovered in 1986 in the lab of Nobel laureate Professor David Baltimore, for its interaction with the immunoglobulin light chain enhancer in B-cells. After more than three decades of study, it is now evident that NF-κB regulates the expression of over 100 genes. Most of these genes play an essential role in the innate and adaptive immune responses as well as the inflammatory responses of animals.
NF-κB-dependent Signaling Mechanism
The...
NF-κB-dependent Signaling Mechanism
The...
7.5K
01:30Other Stress Responses in Bacteria
30
Bacteria have global regulatory systems that control several types of stress mechanisms. These include Pho regulon and the heat shock response, which are essential systems for environmental adaptation, such as nutrient limitation and proteotoxic stress. The Pho regulon and the heat shock response exemplify bacterial resilience, enabling rapid adaptation to fluctuating environmental conditions.Pho RegulonBacteria require phosphorus for essential cellular processes, including nucleic acid...
30