Preliminary Study on Artificial versus Animal-Based Feeding Systems for Amblyomma Ticks (Acari: Ixodidae)

ABSTRACT: Hard ticks pose a threat to animal and human health. Active life stages need to feed on a vertebrate host in order to complete their life cycle. To study processes such as tick-pathogen interactions or drug efficacy and pharmacokinetics, it is necessary to maintain tick colonies under defined laboratory conditions, typically using laboratory animals. The aim of this study was to test a membrane-based artificial feeding system (AFS) applicable for Amblyomma ticks using Amblyomma tonelliae as a biological model. Adult ticks from a laboratory colony were fed in a membrane-based AFS. For comparison, other A. tonelliae adults were fed on calf and rabbit. The proportions of attached (AFS: 76%; calf/rabbit: 100%) and engorged females (AFS: 47.4%; calf/rabbit: 100%) in the AFS were significantly l

SUBMITTER: Sebastian P 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10221037 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature