Disease relevance of Argas

• OBJECTIVE: Our aim was to characterize the major allergen implicated in a series of anaphylactic reactions caused by Argas bites and to produce the allergen as recombinant protein for diagnostic purposes [1].

High impact information on Argas

• Immunoblotting of 23 sera revealed an IgE-binding protein in 19 of 23 sera (82%) at 22 kd, indicating a major allergen of Argas [2].
• Using a whole-body extract of Argas, diagnosis through SPT and specific IgE is hampered by false-negative and irrelevant positive results, particularly in atopy [2].
• The mutual relationships of these purines in excreta of Argas (Persicargas) persicus were found to be less than 1.5% for hypoxanthine, less than 9.0% for xanthine and 89.8-98.6% for guanine [3].
• Rod (RS) and coccoid (CS) rickettsia-like microorganisms were found in single and group forms in organs of the laboratory-reared adult ticks Argas (Persicarges) arboreus [4].
• The soil microhabitat (in Argas confined to 3 of the 4 species recorded here), and the reptile or ancient mammal hosts of these 3 species, as well as the zoogeographical isolation of 2 of the species in the Malagasy Region, are distinctive in this genus of 56 species [5].

Associations of Argas with chemical compounds

• The change in sera protein bands after Argas persicus female repeated feeding was studied by the use of 10% SDS polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis [6].
• The biochemical effects of juvenile hormone III (JH III) on developing embryos from treated female Argas (Persicargas) arboreus Kaiser, Hoogstraal and Kohls were examined [7].
• The residual repellent activity of N,N-diethylphenyl-acetamide (DEPA), N,N-diethyl-3-methyl benzamide (DEET) and dimethylphthalate (DMP) against the hard tick Rhipicephalus sanguineus (Latreille) and the soft tick Argas persicus (Oken) from topical application on rabbits and hens respectively in the laboratory have been studied [8].

Gene context of Argas

• Argas (Argas) monolakensis, n. sp., is described from adults, nymphs, and larvae collected from under and around nests of California gulls, Larus californicus Lawrence, on islands in Mono Lake, Mono County, Calif., and from specimens reared in the laboratory [9].

References