Ixodes scapularis
Intact salivary glands (SG) from unfed Ixodes scapularis adult females were collected and cells were dissociated following a mechanical and enzymatic protocol. The average weight of the group unfed 1 is 1.6 mg. RNA extraction was performed with the Arcturus PicoPure RNA isolation kit (Thermo Fisher Scientific) according to manufacturer`s specifications and analyzed with an TapeStation system (Agilent, USA). The library was constructed using the NEBNextUltraTM II (Directional) RNA with polyA selection library prep kit and sequencing was performed in an Illumina Novaseq 6000 DNA sequencer.