Abstract
Tick-borne viral diseases continue to emerge in the United States, as clearly evident from the increase in Powassan encephalitis virus, Heartland virus, and Bourbon virus infections. Tick-borne flaviviruses (TBFVs) are transmitted to the mammalian host along with the infected tick saliva during blood-feeding. Successful tick feeding is facilitated by a complex repertoire of pharmacologically active salivary proteins/factors in tick saliva. These salivary factors create an immunologically privileged micro-environment in the host’s skin that influences virus transmission and pathogenesis. In this review, we will highlight tick determinants of TBFV transmission with a special emphasis on tick–virus–host interactions at the cutaneous interface.
Highlights
The interactions between tick-borne flaviviruses (TBFVs), tick vectors, and vertebrate hosts are essential for successful tick-borne disease transmission (Figure 1)
Strain) plus unfed I. scapularis salivary gland extract (SGE), the transmission and dissemination of POWV was enhanced by the presence of SGE, resulting in neuroinvasion, paralysis, and death for all mice; mice inoculated with 103 PFU POWV in the absence of tick SGE displayed no clinical signs of infection and none succumbed to disease [13]
Since TBFVs can be transmitted to a host in less than an hour of tick feeding [24,26], the early cutaneous interactions between host immunity and initial tick-mediated immunomodulation are central to successful flavivirus transmission
Summary
The interactions between tick-borne flaviviruses (TBFVs), tick vectors, and vertebrate hosts are essential for successful tick-borne disease transmission (Figure 1) These three components interact with one another individually (tick–virus, host–virus, and tick–host) and shape the outcome of a tick-borne flaviviral infection; the tick feeding site is the one location where all three of these components interact together. This The perspective emphasized by highlighting the role of the cutaneous interfaceinduring the focus of will this be review article will be on tick determinants of TBFV transmission vivo This early timeline of be flavivirus transmission by tick feeding. Perspective will emphasized by highlighting the role of the cutaneous interface during the early timeline of flavivirus transmission by tick feeding
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