Life Sciences Commons^™

The Defensin Gene In Dermacentor Variabilis And Ixodes Scapularis, Katherine Corbett Seguin

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

In response to microbial challenge, invertebrates rely on their innate immune response to recognize and destroy harmful pathogens. One of the primary proteins produced by the response and that has been observed in many invertebrates, including insects, mussels, and ticks, is defensin. These proteins are responsible for forming pores in the membranes of invading microbes thereby destroying them. This study examined the gene coding region for defensin in two important tick disease vectors, Dermacentor variabilis and Ixodes scapularis. PCR amplification of the genes from tick chromosomal DNA resulted in the amplification of a 225 base pair amplicon. Sequencing of …

Incorporation Of Carbon-14 Metabolites Into The Sex Pheromon 26-Dichlorophenol Of Dermacentor Andersoni Stiles; And The Disruption Of Pheromone Activity In D. Andersoni And D. Variabilis (Say) By Quinones, Daniel Martin Gainsburg

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

The Rocky Mountain wood tick, Dermacentor andersoni Stiles, injected with (u-¹⁴c) sodium acetate or DL-(benzene ring-u-¹⁴c) tryptophan for in vivo studies, was found to produce sex pheromone, 2,6-dichlorophenol, containing ¹⁴c activity. Ambiguous results were obtained with L-(u- ¹⁴c) tyrosine, and no incorporation of ¹⁴c label into pheromone was observed with DL-(ring-u- ¹⁴c) phenylalanine or DL-(side chain-3-¹⁴c) tyrosine. Attempts were made to determine the site of synthesis, but in vitro studies proved inconclusive.

Disruption of sex pheromone activity in D. andersoni and the American dog tick, D. variabilis (Say) was achieved …