Discovery of Alpha-Gal-Containing Antigens in North American Tick Species Believed to Induce Red Meat Allergy
Crispell G, Commins SP, Archer-Hartman SA, Choudhary S, Dharmarajan G, Azadi P, Karim S
Frontiers in immunology · 140 citations
Review labels
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How it was studied
- Design
- In vitro/mechanistic study (classified by our AI screen)
- Studied in
- Animals
- Main outcome
- Mechanisms only
Who paid for it
- Funding
- Independent funding
- Government
- U.S. Department of Agriculture
- Government
- National Institutes of Health
- Government
- National Institute of Food and Agriculture
- Government
- National Center for Research Resources
- Government
- NCRR NIH HHS
- Government
- NIH HHS
- Government
- NIGMS NIH HHS
- Government
- NIAID NIH HHS
- Grants
- National Institutes of Health (P41GM10349010); National Institute of Food and Agriculture (2017-67017-26171); National Institute of Food and Agriculture (2016-67030-24576); U.S. Department of Agriculture (2017-67017-26171); National Center for Research Resources (P20 RR016476); U.S. Department of Agriculture (2016-67030-24576); National Institutes of Health (1s10od018530-01); National Institutes of Health (ISIOD108530)
Based on 8 listed funder(s) and full-text disclosure statement.
Publication
- Published
- 2019-05-17 · Front Immunol · vol. 10 · p. 1056
- Publisher
- Frontiers Media
- Cited
- 175 citations · more than 99% of similar papers · 10.9× the field average
- Impact
- Top 10% most cited in its field
- References
- 46 works
- Access
- Open access (journal) · CC-BY
- Research areas
- Food Allergy and Anaphylaxis Research · Allergic Rhinitis and Sensitization · Vector-borne infectious diseases
- Keywords
- Amblyomma americanum, Dermacentor variabilis, Tick, Ixodes scapularis, Biology, Antigen, Saliva, Rocky Mountain spotted fever, Microbiology, Immunology, Virology, Ixodidae, Biochemistry
- MeSH
- salivary glands, cells, cultured, saliva, animals, humans, ticks, tick-borne diseases, food hypersensitivity, galactose, immunoglobulin e, allergens, red meat
7 authors
From US
- Gary CrispellUniversity of Southern Mississippi
- Scott P. ComminsUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
- Stephanie A. Archer-HartmanUniversity of Georgia
- Shailesh Kumar ChoudharyUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
- Guha DharmarajanUniversity of Georgia; Savannah River National Laboratory
- Parastoo AzadiUniversity of Georgia
Abstract
Development of specific IgE antibodies to the oligosaccharide galactose-α-1, 3-galactose (α-gal) following tick bites has been shown to be the source of red meat allergy. In this study, we investigated the presence of α-gal in four tick species: the lone-star tick (Amblyomma americanum), the Gulf-Coast tick (Amblyomma maculatum), the American dog tick (Dermacentor variabilis), and the black-legged tick (Ixodes scapularis) by using a combination of immunoproteomic approach and, carbohydrate analysis. Anti-α-gal antibodies identified α-gal in the salivary glands of both Am. americanum and Ix. scapularis, while Am. maculatum and De. variabilis appeared to lack the carbohydrate. PNGase F treatment confirmed the deglycosylation of N-linked α-gal-containing proteins in tick salivary glands. Immunolocalization of α-gal moieties to the salivary secretory vesicles of the salivary acini also confirmed the secretory nature of α-gal-containing antigens in ticks. Am. americanum ticks were fed on human blood (lacks α-gal) using a silicone membrane system to determine the source of the α-gal. N-linked glycan analysis revealed that Am. americanum and Ix. scapularis have α-gal in their saliva and salivary glands, but Am. maculatum contains no detectable quantity. Consistent with the glycan analysis, salivary samples from Am. americanum and Ix. scapularis stimulated activation of basophils primed with plasma from α-gal allergic subjects. Together, these data support the idea that bites from certain tick species may specifically create a risk for the development of α-gal-specific IgE and hypersensitivity reactions in humans. Alpha-Gal syndrome challenges the current food allergy paradigm and broadens opportunities for future research.
Abstract via Europe PMC. Copyright remains with the authors or publisher (CC BY).
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