{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,18]],"date-time":"2026-01-18T11:29:34Z","timestamp":1768735774744,"version":"3.49.0"},"reference-count":24,"publisher":"Frontiers Media SA","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2023,10,12]],"date-time":"2023-10-12T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1697068800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["frontiersin.org"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["Front. Cell. Infect. Microbiol."],"abstract":"<jats:p>Adult <jats:italic>Amblyomma sculptum<\/jats:italic> and <jats:italic>Amblyomma aureolatum<\/jats:italic> ticks are partially refractory to <jats:italic>Rickettsia rickettsii<\/jats:italic> when fed on infected hosts, hindering the functional characterization of potentially protective targets in the bacterial acquisition. In the current study, we used the anal pore route to infect adult <jats:italic>A. sculptum<\/jats:italic> and <jats:italic>A. aureolatum<\/jats:italic> ticks with <jats:italic>R. rickettsii<\/jats:italic> and to assess the effects of the knockdown of microplusin in infection control. The anal pore route was efficient to infect both species, resulting in a prevalence of around 100% of infected ticks. Higher loads of <jats:italic>R. rickettsii<\/jats:italic> were detected in microplusin-silenced <jats:italic>A. aureolatum<\/jats:italic> in relation to the control, as previously obtained when microplusin-silenced ticks were fed on <jats:italic>R. rickettsii<\/jats:italic>-infected rabbits. This is the first report showing <jats:italic>R<\/jats:italic>. <jats:italic>rickettsii<\/jats:italic> infection through the anal pore in <jats:italic>Amblyomma<\/jats:italic> ticks, highlighting this route as a powerful tool to assess the role played by additional targets in the control of pathogens.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3389\/fcimb.2023.1260390","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2023,10,12]],"date-time":"2023-10-12T17:25:47Z","timestamp":1697131547000},"update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3389\/crossmark-policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":2,"title":["The anal pore route is efficient to infect Amblyomma spp. ticks with Rickettsia rickettsii and allows the assessment of the role played by infection control targets"],"prefix":"10.3389","volume":"13","author":[{"given":"Marcelly Bastos","family":"Nassar","sequence":"first","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Daniel B.","family":"Pavanelo","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Marcelo B.","family":"Labruna","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Sirlei","family":"Daffre","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Eliane","family":"Esteves","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]},{"given":"Andr\u00e9a C.","family":"Foga\u00e7a","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[],"role":[{"role":"author","vocabulary":"crossref"}]}],"member":"1965","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2023,10,12]]},"reference":[{"key":"B1","doi-asserted-by":"publisher","first-page":"252","DOI":"10.1196\/annals.1374.044","article-title":"Brazilian spotted fever: a case series from an endemic area in southeastern Brazil: clinical aspects","volume":"1078","author":"Angerami","year":"2006","journal-title":"Ann. 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