Tick factors associated pathogen transmission～Tick immunosuppressants in saliva

Tick saliva exhibits several biological functions such as adhesion, cytolysis, vasodilation/vasoconstriction, angiogenesis, anti-platelet aggregation, anti-blood coagulation, anti-complement activity, anti-inflammatory, and immunosuppressive activity, and so on. The saliva is secreted by salivary gland, and the injected saliva facilitates blood uptake during the tick bite. Tick-borne pathogens are transmitted to vertebrate hosts via the saliva. This means that the tick saliva plays a key role in the pathogen transmission. In this session, we would like to introduce the ‘Immune-modulatory factors including immunosuppressant’ in the tick saliva.