Journal
ISCIENCE
Volume 25, Issue 3, Pages -Publisher
CELL PRESS
DOI: 10.1016/j.isci.2022.103781
Keywords
-
Categories
Funding
- NIH-NIAID [R21AI128393, R21AI111175]
- Plymouth Hill Foundation
- University of Nevada
- USDA-NIFA [2014-10320]
- IGTRCN
- USDA Hatch funds [PEN04769]
- NSF-BIO [1645331]
- National Institute of General Medical Sciences from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) [GM103440, 5 U54 GM104944]
- Division Of Integrative Organismal Systems
- Direct For Biological Sciences [1645331] Funding Source: National Science Foundation
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Ticks have the ability to transmit various debilitating pathogens, but research on ticks has been lacking compared to other arthropod vectors due to challenges in applying genetic and molecular tools. This study reports a successful embryo injection protocol for the black-legged tick and demonstrates the use of CRISPR-Cas9 for genome editing. The results provide innovative tools for tick research.
Despite their capacity to acquire and pass on an array of debilitating pathogens, research on ticks has lagged behind other arthropod vectors, such as mosquitoes, largely because of challenges in applying available genetic and molecular tools. CRISPR-Cas9 is transforming non-model organism research; however, successful gene editing has not yet been reported in ticks. Technical challenges for injecting tick embryos to attempt gene editing have further slowed research progress. Currently, no embryo injection protocol exists for any chelicerate species, including ticks. Herein, we report a successful embryo injection protocol for the black-legged tick, Ixodes scapularis, and the use of this protocol for genome editing with CRISPR-Cas9. We also demonstrate that the ReMOT Control technique could be successfully used to generate genome mutations outside Insecta. Our results provide innovative tools to the tick research community that are essential for advancing our understanding of the molecular mechanisms governing pathogen transmission by tick vectors and the underlying biology of host-vector -pathogen interactions.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available