RESUMO
Objective To identify antigenic proteins from the salivary glands of female Anopheles maculatus using a proteomic approach to find the biomarker candidate for serological tools. Methods The identification of antigenic proteins of Anopheles maculatus salivary gland used these techniques: one-dimensional gel electrophoresis (sodium dodecyl sulfate polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis), western blot, and liquid chromatography–mass spectrometry. Results The proteins that have molecular weight (MW) 43 and 34 kDa were the antigenic protein. Computational bioinformatic analysis by Mascot Server revealed seven novel hypothetical proteins (MW: 43 kDa) and two novel hypothetical proteins (MW: 34 kDa). Further analysis (BLASTP, antigenicity, epitope mapping, and specificity analysis) showed that two novel proteins were identified as apolipoprotein D and cathepsin D in Anopheles darlingi. Conclusions The identified proteins are potential to be developed as a biomarker of mosquito bite's exposure.