Abstract
The rearing of ticks is an important technique for studies aiming to elucidate the course and pathogenesis of tick-borne diseases (TBDs). TBDs caused by protozoans (Theileria, Babesia) and bacteria (Anaplasma/Ehrlichia) impose a serious constraint upon livestock health and production in tropical and sub-tropical regions where the distributions of host, pathogen, and vector overlap. This study focuses on Hyalomma marginatum, one of the most important Hyalomma species in the Mediterranean region, being a vector of the virus that causes Crimean-Congo haemorrhagic fever in humans, together with H. excavatum, a vector of Theileria annulata, an important protozoan of cattle. The adaptation of ticks to feeding on artificial membranes allows the creation of model systems that can be put to use examining the underlying mechanisms of pathogen transmission by ticks. Silicone membranes, in particular, offer researchers the flexibility to adjust membrane thickness and content during artificial feeding. The aim of the present study was to develop an artificial feeding technique using silicone-based membranes for all developmental stages of H. excavatum and H. marginatum ticks. Attachment rates after feeding on silicone membranes for females H. marginatum and H. excavatum were 8.33% (8/96) and 7.95% (7/88), respectively. The use of cow hair as a stimulant increased the attachment rate of H. marginatum adults in comparison to other stimulants. The engorgement of H. marginatum and H. excavatum females took 20.5 and 23 days with average weights of 307.85 and 260.64 mg, respectively. Although both tick species could complete egg-laying, and this was followed by hatching of larvae; their larvae and nymphs could not be fed artificially. Taken together, the results of the present study clearly indicate that silicone membranes are suitable for feeding of H. excavatum and H. marginatum adult ticks, supporting engorgement, laying of eggs, and hatching of the larvae. They thus represent a versatile tool for studying transmission mechanisms of tick-borne pathogens. Further studies are warranted to examine attachment and feeding behaviours in order to increase the success of artificial feeding of larvae and nymphal stages.
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Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank Prof. Willie Weir from the Univ. of Glasgow (https://www.gla.ac.uk/schools/bohvm/staff/willieweir/#) for his valuable contribution to the manuscript.
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Financial support for this study was provided by a grant from TUBITAK (grant number: TUBITAK-118O904).
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Conception and design of study: Serkan Bakirci, Hüseyin Bilgin Bilgiç, and Tülin Karagenç; acquisition of data: Serkan Bakirci, Hüseyin Bilgin Bilgiç, Selin Hacilarlioğlu, and Metin Pekağirbaş; analysis and/or interpretation of data: Serkan Bakirci, Hüseyin Bilgin Bilgiç, and Tülin Karagenç; drafting the manuscript: Serkan Bakirci, Hüseyin Bilgin Bilgiç, and Tülin Karagenç; revising the manuscript critically for important intellectual content: Hüseyin Bilgin Bilgiç, Hasan Eren, and Serkan Bakirci; approval of the version of the manuscript to be published: Serkan Bakirci, Hüseyin Bilgin Bilgiç, Tülin Karagenç, Selin Hacilarlioğlu, Metin Pekağirbaş, and Hasan Eren.
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All the clinical/laboratory experiments with laboratory animals (gerbil and rabbits) were approved by the Animal Experiment Ethics Committee of Aydin Adnan Menderes University on the 31st May 2018 in accordance with decision number 64583101/2018/074.
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Bilgiç, H.B., Hacilarlioğlu, S., Pekağirbaş, M. et al. In vitro feeding of Hyalomma excavatum and Hyalomma marginatum tick species. Parasitol Res 122, 1641–1649 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-023-07867-7
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00436-023-07867-7