Although binding of rRmLTI by polyclonal antibodies from mice immunized with tick larva extract indicates that the recombinant polypeptide produced in P. pastoris was as antigenic as the native form of the cognate

larval trypsin inhibitor, it is possible that those antibodies recognized epitopes shared by the several trypsin inhibitors discovered in R. microplus larvae. Antiserum from cattle vaccinated with purified R. microplus trypsin inhibitors recognized rBmTI-6 produced in P. pastoris [21]. Antigenic similarity apparently extends beyond find more intra-specific boundaries because antiserum against the native form of R. microplus larval trypsin inhibitors cross-reacts with trypsin inhibitors identified in R. sanguineus larvae [27]. Immunogenicity of the rRmLTI is reflected in the kinetics of the bovine humoral immune response. The significant effect on the rate of larvae hatching from eggs laid by female ticks

parasitizing vaccinated cattle, which was amplified by feeding female ticks with purified anti-rRmLTI IgG suggests that potentiation of the humoral response, perhaps Angiogenesis inhibitor using other adjuvants, could enhance the efficacy of a polyvalent vaccine with Kunitz inhibitors from R. microplus. Adjuvant choice was shown to influence antibody levels, which correlated with the level of inhibition on malaria parasites [28]. However, no direct correlation was observed between antibodies against rRmLTI and overall efficacy in our study. By comparison, the vast array of Kunitz type inhibitors present in R. microplus was invoked to explain the apparently small found impact silencing the gene coding for boophilin, a double Kunitz type thrombin inhibitor expressed in the gut, had on egg production [29]. Considering the purported involvement of larval trypsin inhibitors and confirmed role of other Kunitz inhibitors in blood feeding, the reduced number of female ticks detaching from vaccinated

cattle may reflect the impact of bovine anti-rRmLTI antibodies on the ability of R. microplus to acquire a blood meal [20] and [29]. However, the physiological roles of RmLTI and BmTI-6 remain to be determined in the larval and adult stages of the cattle tick, respectively, despite similarities in their partial nucleotide and amino acid sequences. Without knowing the function of RmLTI and BmTI-6, it remains possible that the decrease in hatching rates observed in eggs laid by female ticks fed purified IgG antibodies obtained from vaccinated cattle resulted from the effects of antibody binding to epitopes shared by rRmLTI and the native form of BmTI-6 in R. microplus ovaries. The Kunitz family of polypeptides is one of at least 20 families belonging to the canonical type of serine protease inhibitors [30]. A characteristic of proteins belonging to this family is the Kunitz domain that can be present in single or multiple copies. At least 303 Kunitz proteins have been identified in ticks thus far and some of them can contain as many as seven Kunitz domains [31].