Fig. 4

Rhipicephalus microplus saliva inhibition upon the binding of factor B and properdin to C3b. fB = factor B (a); P = properdin (b). Assays were performed by adsorbing purified C3b on a 96-well microplate followed by the addition of purified fB and properdin in the presence of Mg²⁺. Different amounts of saliva were tested. The deposition of the components was assessed using anti-fB and anti-properdin polyclonal antibodies. Bars represent the arithmetic mean ± standard deviation (SD) of three biological replicates. Asterisks indicate significant differences from controls (*P < 0.05; **P < 0.01; ***P < 0.001)