Ticks are mite-related ectoparasites and vectors of serious diseases infecting humans and animals. Most of the ~850 worldwide distributed species are included in two major tick families Ixodidae (hard ticks) and Argasidae (soft ticks). Feeding and processing of host blood are essential physiological events since vertebrate blood presents an ultimate source of nutrients and energy for ticks. Tick gut tissue also presents the primary gate for pathogen entry. Mechanisms of avoiding or misusage of tick metabolic and immune pathways thus mean a basic prerequisite for the successful transmission of pathogens to their vertebrate hosts.
Physiology of feeding substantially differs between the two large tick families. In soft ticks, nymphs and the adults of both sexes take their blood meals rapidly, within hours, and then drop-off the host. Feeding and oviposition of soft ticks are cyclical processes, and feeding performance is not necessarily related to mating status because virgin females may...
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Sojka, D. (2015). Tick Blood Digestion. In: Mehlhorn, H. (eds) Encyclopedia of Parasitology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27769-6_3489-1
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27769-6_3489-1
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