Excerpt:

Ticks harbor numerous bacterial, protozoal, and viral pathogens
that can cause serious infections in humans and domestic animals.
Active surveillance of the tick vector can provide insight into
the frequency and distribution of important pathogens in the
environment. Nucleic-acid based detection of tick-borne
bacterial, protozoan, and viral pathogens requires the extraction
of both DNA and RNA (total nucleic acids) from ticks. Traditional
methods for nucleic acid extraction are limited to extraction of
either DNA or the RNA from a sample.
Here we present a simple bead-beating based protocol for
extraction of DNA and RNA from a single tick and show detection
of Borrelia burgdorferi and Powassan virus from individual,
infected Ixodes scapularis ticks. We determined expected yields
for total nucleic acids by this protocol for a variety of adult
tick species. The method is applicable to a variety of arthropod
vectors, including fleas and mosquitoes, and was partially
automated on a liquid handling robot.