INTRODUCTION The saliva of mosquitoes has an important role in the transmission of several diseases, including malaria, and contains substances with vasomodulating and immunomodulating effects to counteract the host physiological mechanisms and enhance pathogen transmission. As immunomodulatory components, salivary gland proteins can induce the generation of specific IgG antibodies in the host,...

The destabilization of UHT milk during its shelf life can be promoted by the residual proteolytic activity attributed to protease AprX from Pseudomonas. To better understand hydrolysis patterns AprX, and evaluate feasibility using low-temperature inactivation (LTI) for release peptides through on proteins was examined an LC-MS/MS-based peptidomic analysis. Milk samples were either directly incu...

Salivary agglutinin is encoded by DMBT1 and identical to gp-340, a member of the scavenger receptor cysteine-rich (SRCR) superfamily. Salivary agglutinin/DMBT1 is known for its Streptococcus mutans agglutinating properties. This 300-400 kDa glycoprotein is composed of conserved peptide motifs: 14 SRCR domains that are separated by SRCR-interspersed domains (SIDs), 2 CUB (C1r/C1s Uegf Bmp1) doma...

With recent progress in the analysis of the salivary proteome, the number of salivary proteins identified has increased dramatically. However, the physiological functions of many of the newly discovered proteins remain unclear. Closely related to the study of a protein's function is the identification of its interaction partners. Although in saliva some proteins may act primarily as single mono...

A protein that blocks collagen-stimulated platelet aggregation has been identified and isolated from the soluble fraction of salivary glands from Haementeriu officinalis leeches. We have named this protein leech antiplatelet protein (LAPP). LAPP was isolated from soluble crude salivary gland extract by heparin-agarose, size exclusion, and CIS reverse phase high-performance chromatography. Its m...

Vaccine development is informed by a knowledge of genetic variation among antigen alleles, especially the distribution of positive and balancing selection in populations and species. A combined approach using population genetic and phylogenetic methods to detect selective signatures can therefore be informative for identifying vaccine candidates. Parasitic Leishmania species cause the disease l...

BACKGROUND Phlebotomus tobbi is a vector of Leishmania infantum, and P. sergenti is a vector of Leishmania tropica. Le. infantum and Le. tropica typically cause visceral or cutaneous leishmaniasis, respectively, but Le. infantum strains transmitted by P. tobbi can cause cutaneous disease. To better understand the components and possible implications of sand fly saliva in leishmaniasis, the tran...

INTRODUCTION Saliva is a potentially important barrier against respiratory viral infection but its mechanism of action is not well studied. METHODS We tested the antiviral activities of whole saliva, specific salivary gland secretions, and purified salivary proteins against strains of influenza A virus (IAV) in vitro. RESULTS Whole saliva or parotid or submandibular/sublingual secretions fr...

BACKGROUND Saliva of hematophagous arthropods contains a diverse mixture of compounds that counteracts host hemostasis. Immunomodulatory and antiinflammatory components are also found in these organisms' saliva. Blood feeding evolved at least ten times within arthropods, providing a scenario of convergent evolution for the solution of the salivary potion. Perhaps because of immune pressure from...