Abstract
Salivary gland extracts of the sand tampan, Ornithodoros savignyi, prolonged the activated partial thromboplastin time (APTT) and prothrombin time (PT) significantly in a concentration-dependent manner. There was also a pronounced inhibition of human activated factor Xa (fXa) by salivary gland extracts. The salivary gland extracts inhibited chromogenic assays specific for both fXa and thrombin. Sodium dodecyl sulphate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis (SDS-PAGE) of the salivary gland proteins followed by elution of specific areas or bands from a polyvinylidene difluoride (PVDF)-membrane, showed that various anticoagulant factors are present when screened by means of the APTT assay. The most active component was associated with a band of M r of 14 kDa. Partial purification of this component was achieved using isoelectric focusing (IEF) and size-exclusion highperformance liquid chromatography (HPLC).
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Gaspar, A.R.M.D., Crause, J.C. & Neitz, A.W.H. Identification of anticoagulant activities in the salivary glands of the soft tick, Ornithodoros savignyi . Exp Appl Acarol 19, 117–127 (1995). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00052551
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00052551