The Lone Star Tick, Amblyomma americanum, salivary factors exacerbate the clinical outcome of Heartland virus disease in a small animal model.

ABSTRACT: Heartland virus was first isolated in 2009 from two patients in Missouri and is transmitted by the lone star tick, Amblyomma americanum. To understand disease transmission and pathogenesis, it is necessary to develop an animal model that utilizes the natural transmission route and manifests in a manner similar to documented human cases. Herein we describe our investigations on identifying A129 mice as the most appropriate small animal model for HRTV pathogenesis that mimics human clinical outcomes. We further investigated the impact of tick saliva in enhancing pathogen transmission and clinical outcomes. Our investigations revealed an increase in viral load in the groups of mice that received both virus and tick salivary gland extract (SGE). Spleens of all infected mice showed extra

SUBMITTER: Reynolds ES 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10168474 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature