Endocrinology of Tick Reproduction: A New Perspective

Ticks are obligate blood feeders and transmit serious diseases to humans such as Rocky Mountain spotted fever and Lyme disease. Compared to insects, however, little is known about the hormonal regulation of feeding, development, and reproduction in ticks or related chelicerates (e.g. mites, spiders, centipedes). This research project will determine the role of the male reproductive system in initiating blood-feeding and egg production in female ticks. In addition, the role of hormones in the brain of the female tick that regulate female blood-feeding and egg production will be elucidated. The general approach to accomplish these goals involves using parallel sequencing of tick nucleic acids, employing computer-assisted bioinformatics to identify the function of these sequences, and selectively inhibiting the expression of genes to assess their physiological function in ticks. From these studies, the identification of new pesticide targets for tick control, vaccine development, and the regulation of the diseases transmitted by ticks is possible. This work also provides research training for undergraduate students, graduate students and postdoctoral researchers in entomology and biology at two different universities. In addition, the new information generated in this project will be incorporated into a course in Physiology required for all graduate students obtaining degrees in Entomology at North Carolina State University.