A soft tick Ornithodoros moubata salivary protein OmCI is a potent inhibitor to prevent avian complement activation.

ABSTRACT: Complement is a key first line innate host defense system in the blood of vertebrates. Upon activation, this powerful defense mechanism can elicit inflammatory responses, lyse non-self-cells, or mark them for opsonophagocytic removal. Blood-feeding arthropods thus require the ability to block host complement activation in the bloodmeal to prevent undesired cell or tissue damage during feeding. The soft tick Ornithodoros moubata produces a complement inhibitory protein, OmCI. This protein binds to a mammalian complement protein C5 and blocks further activation of complement cascades, which results in the prevention of complement-mediated bacterial killing through membrane attack complex. Interestingly, the amino acids involved in OmCI binding are highly conserved among mammalian and avian C

SUBMITTER: Frye AM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6997930 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature