The tick endosymbiont Candidatus Midichloria mitochondrii and selenoproteins are essential for the growth of Rickettsia parkeri in the Gulf Coast tick vector.

ABSTRACT:

Background

Pathogen colonization inside tick tissues is a significant aspect of the overall competence of a vector. Amblyomma maculatum is a competent vector of the spotted fever group rickettsiae, Rickettsia parkeri. When R. parkeri colonizes its tick host, it has the opportunity to dynamically interact with not just its host but with the endosymbionts living within it, and this enables it to modulate the tick's defenses by regulating tick gene expression. The microbiome in A. maculatum is dominated by two endosymbiont microbes: a Francisella-like endosymbiont (FLE) and Candidatus Midichloria mitochondrii (CMM). A range of selenium-containing proteins (selenoproteins) in A. maculatum ticks protects them from oxidative stress during blood feeding and pathogen infections. Here, we i

SUBMITTER: Budachetri K 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6090677 | biostudies-literature | 2018 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature