Proteomic and Immunological Identification of Antigens from Ticks with Artificial Antiserum

We aimed to screen novel tick antigens using two-dimensional gel electrophoresis (2-DE) followed by western blot analysis (WB) with artificial antiserum. A total of 105 Haemaphysalis longicornis (H. longicornis) ticks were selected to prepare protein samples. Some of them were used for 2-DE, and the others were used to immunize mice to collect tick antiserum for WB. Then, 2-DE followed by WB and MALDI-TOF was carried out to screen and identify tick antigens. We identified 19 protein spots representing 12 ORFs: 4 from ticks and 8 from cattle. Among the the 4 ORFs, Tropomyosin, Elongation factor 1-alpha (EF-1 alpha) and Protein Disulfide Isomerase-2 (PDI-2) have been reported as antigens and even vaccine candidate proteins in ticks or other pathogens but not in H. longicornis. Few reports have described dual specificity phosphatase 3 (DUSP-3) in parasites as an antigen. We successfully screened four potential antigens and found that DUSP-3 is a potential novel antigen for ticks.