Evidence of a tick RNAi pathway by comparative genomics and reverse genetics screen of targets with known loss-of-function phenotypes in Drosophila.

BACKGROUND: The Arthropods are a diverse group of organisms including Chelicerata (ticks, mites, spiders), Crustacea (crabs, shrimps), and Insecta (flies, mosquitoes, beetles, silkworm). The cattle tick, Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus, is an economically significant ectoparasite of cattle affecting cattle industries world wide. With the availability of sequence reads from the first Chelicerate genome project (the Ixodes scapularis tick) and extensive R. microplus ESTs, we investigated evidence for putative RNAi proteins and studied RNA interference in tick cell cultures and adult female ticks targeting Drosophila homologues with known cell viability phenotype. RESULTS: We screened 13,643 R. microplus ESTs and I. scapularis genome reads to identify RNAi related proteins in ticks. Our analysis identified 31 RNAi proteins including a putative tick Dicer, RISC associated (Ago-2 and FMRp), RNA dependent RNA polymerase (EGO-1) and 23 homologues implicated in dsRNA uptake and processing. We selected 10 R. microplus ESTs with >80% similarity to D. melanogaster proteins associated with cell viability for RNAi functional screens in both BME26 R. microplus embryonic cells and female ticks in vivo. Only genes associated with proteasomes had an effect on cell viability in vitro. In vivo RNAi showed that 9 genes had significant effects either causing lethality or impairing egg laying. CONCLUSION: We have identified key RNAi-related proteins in ticks and along with our loss-of-function studies support a functional RNAi pathway in R. microplus. Our preliminary studies indicate that tick RNAi pathways may differ from that of other Arthropods such as insects.

Determination of dihydroergosine in sorghum ergot using an immunoassay.

Dihydroergosine (DHES) is the principal toxic alkaloid produced by sorghum ergot (Claviceps africana). It has recently been shown that DHES levels as low as 1 mg/kg in animal feed can cause significant production losses. Quantitative immunoassays for detecting the related rye ergot alkaloid, ergotamine, are described in the literature, but those assays are relatively insensitive for DHES. This paper describes competitive enzyme-linked immunosorbent assays (ELISA) for measuring the DHES concentration in grains and mixed animal feed. The assays were developed using a DHES specific mouse monoclonal antibody and rabbit polyclonal antibodies raised against DHES conjugated to bovine serum albumin. Recoveries of between 77 and 103% were obtained from spiked grain using a simple, one step extraction with 70% methanol. Both the monoclonal and the polyclonal assays are capable of detecting DHES concentrations above 0.01 mg/kg, but quantification is most reliable at concentrations of 0.1 mg/kg or higher.

Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus tick in vitro feeding methods for functional (dsRNA) and vaccine candidate (antibody) screening.

Rhipicephalus (Boophilus) microplus (Acari: Ixodidae) ticks cause economic losses for cattle industries throughout tropical and subtropical regions of the world estimated at $US2.5 billion annually. Lack of access to efficacious long-lasting vaccination regimes and increases in tick acaricide resistance have led to the investigation of targets for the development of novel tick vaccines and treatments. In vitro tick feeding has been used for many tick species to study the effect of new acaricides on the transmission of tick-borne pathogens. Few studies have reported the use of in vitro feeding for functional genomic studies using RNA interference and/or the effect of specific anti-tick antibodies. In particular, in vitro feeding reports for the cattle tick are limited due to its relatively short hypostome. Previously published methods were further modified to broaden optimal tick sizes/weights, feeding sources including bovine and ovine serum, optimisation of commercially available blood anti-coagulant tubes, and IgG concentrations for effective antibody delivery. Ticks are fed overnight and monitored for ∼5-6 weeks to determine egg output and success of larval emergence using a humidified incubator. Lithium-heparin blood tubes provided the most reliable anti-coagulant for bovine blood feeding compared with commercial citrated (CPDA) and EDTA tubes. Although >30mg semi-engorged ticks fed more reliably, ticks as small as 15mg also fed to repletion to lay viable eggs. Ticks which gained less than ∼10mg during in vitro feeding typically did not lay eggs. One mg/ml IgG from Bm86-vaccinated cattle produced a potent anti-tick effect in vitro (83% efficacy) similar to that observed in vivo. Alternatively, feeding of dsRNA targeting Bm86 did not demonstrate anti-tick effects (11% efficacy) compared with the potent effects of ubiquitin dsRNA. This study optimises R. microplus tick in vitro feeding methods which support the development of cattle tick vaccines and treatments.