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Ma L, Wang H, Liu Y, Sun J, Yan X, Lu Z, Hao C, Qie X. Single von Willebrand factor C-domain protein-2 confers immune defense against bacterial infections in the silkworm, Bombyx mori. Int J Biol Macromol 2024; 279:135241. [PMID: 39233173 DOI: 10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2024.135241] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/13/2024] [Revised: 08/16/2024] [Accepted: 08/29/2024] [Indexed: 09/06/2024]
Abstract
Single-domain von Willebrand factor type C proteins (SVWCs), primarily found in arthropods, responds to infections caused by various pathogens. Three SVWCs have been identified in the silkworm and BmSVWC2 might play a crucial role in the immune system. However, the regulatory mechanism of BmSVWC2 remains largely unknown. This study aimed to investigate the biochemical functions of BmSVWC2 in the immune system of B. mori comprehensively. Phylogenetic analysis revealed that BmSVWC1, BmSVWC3, and BmSVWC2 were distributed in diverse groups, suggesting distinct biochemical functions. The mRNA and protein levels of BmSVWC2 increased significantly in response to bacterial infection. BmSVWC2 exhibited clear binding activity to the polysaccharide pathogen-associated molecular patterns of bacteria and fungi, enhancing bacterial clearance in vivo but not in vitro. RNA-sequencing assays of the fat body and hemocytes showed that numerous immune genes were markedly up-regulated with higher level of BmSVWC2, primarily affecting recognition, signaling, and response production of the Toll and immune deficiency (IMD) signaling pathways. This led to the production of various antimicrobial peptides and significant antibacterial activities in the hemolymph. BmSVWC2 up-regulated phagocytosis-related genes in the fat body and hemocytes, and phagocytosis assays confirmed that BmSVWC2 improved the phagocytic ability of hemocytes against bacteria. Additionally, BmSVWC2 induced the expression of nitric oxide synthetase (NOS) in the fat body, and bioassays confirmed that BmSVWC2 increased NOS activity in the fat body and hemolymph, resulting in nitric oxide accumulation. However, BmSVWC2 did not affect phenoloxidase activity, despite it caused differential expression of a few serine proteases and serine protease inhibitors. Co-immunoprecipitation and mass spectrometry assays showed that BmSVWC2 interacted with 30 K proteins, such as 30 K protein 2, 30 K pBmHPC-19, 30 K 19G1-like, 30 K protein 8, 30 K protein 7, 30 K pBmHPC-23, and low molecular mass lipoprotein 4-like. Our study provides a comprehensive characterization of BmSVWC2 and elucidates the mechanism underlying its regulation of immune responses activation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Li Ma
- College of Plant Protection, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taigu, Shanxi, 030801, China
| | - Han Wang
- College of Plant Protection, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taigu, Shanxi, 030801, China
| | - Yaya Liu
- College of Plant Protection, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taigu, Shanxi, 030801, China
| | - Jing Sun
- College of Plant Protection, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taigu, Shanxi, 030801, China
| | - Xizhong Yan
- College of Plant Protection, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taigu, Shanxi, 030801, China
| | - Zhiqiang Lu
- Department of Entomology, College of Plant Protection, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, Shaanxi 712100, China.
| | - Chi Hao
- College of Plant Protection, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taigu, Shanxi, 030801, China.
| | - Xingtao Qie
- College of Plant Protection, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taigu, Shanxi, 030801, China.
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2
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Chen CY, Chan WY, Ismail A, Oliver SV. Characterization of the Tissue and Strain-Specific Microbiota of Anopheles funestus Giles (Diptera: Culicidae). Trop Med Infect Dis 2024; 9:84. [PMID: 38668545 PMCID: PMC11053693 DOI: 10.3390/tropicalmed9040084] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/04/2024] [Revised: 04/06/2024] [Accepted: 04/10/2024] [Indexed: 04/29/2024] Open
Abstract
The mosquito microbiota is a critical determinant of mosquito life history. It is therefore a target for novel vector control strategies like paratransgenesis. However, the microbiota in Anopheles funestus, a major African malaria vector, is poorly characterized. Thus, the study aimed to investigate the overall bacterial landscape in the salivary glands, ovaries and midguts of three laboratory strains of An. funestus differing in insecticide-resistant phenotype by sequencing the V3-V4 hypervariable region of bacterial 16S rRNA genes. When examining alpha diversity, the salivary glands harbored significantly more bacteria in terms of species richness and evenness compared to ovaries and midguts. On the strain level, the insecticide-susceptible FANG strain had significantly lower bacterial diversity than the insecticide-resistant FUMOZ and FUMOZ-R strains. When looking at beta diversity, the compositions of microbiota between the three tissues as well as between the strains were statistically different. While there were common bacteria across all three tissues and strains of interest, each tissue and strain did exhibit differentially abundant bacterial genera. However, overall, the top five most abundant genera across all tissues and strains were Elizabethkingia, Acinetobacter, Aeromonas, Cedecea and Yersinia. The presence of shared microbiota suggests a core microbiota that could be exploited for paratransgenesis efforts.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chia-Yu Chen
- Wits Research Institute for Malaria, School of Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg 2193, South Africa;
- Centre for Emerging Zoonotic and Parasitic Diseases, National Institute for Communicable Diseases, Division of the National Health Laboratory Service, Johannesburg 2193, South Africa
| | - Wai-Yin Chan
- Sequencing Core Facility, National Institute for Communicable Diseases, Division of the National Health Laboratory Service, Johannesburg 2193, South Africa; (W.-Y.C.); (A.I.)
- Department of Biochemistry, Genetics and Microbiology (BGM), Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI), University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0028, South Africa
| | - Arshad Ismail
- Sequencing Core Facility, National Institute for Communicable Diseases, Division of the National Health Laboratory Service, Johannesburg 2193, South Africa; (W.-Y.C.); (A.I.)
- Department of Biochemistry and Microbiology, Faculty of Science, Engineering and Agriculture, University of Venda, Thohoyandou 0950, South Africa
- Institute for Water and Wastewater Technology, Durban University of Technology, Durban 4000, South Africa
| | - Shüné V. Oliver
- Wits Research Institute for Malaria, School of Pathology, Faculty of Health Sciences, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg 2193, South Africa;
- Centre for Emerging Zoonotic and Parasitic Diseases, National Institute for Communicable Diseases, Division of the National Health Laboratory Service, Johannesburg 2193, South Africa
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3
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Bergmann S, Graf E, Hoffmann P, Becker SC, Stern M. Localization of nitric oxide-producing hemocytes in Aedes and Culex mosquitoes infected with bacteria. Cell Tissue Res 2024; 395:313-326. [PMID: 38240845 PMCID: PMC10904431 DOI: 10.1007/s00441-024-03862-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2023] [Accepted: 01/05/2024] [Indexed: 03/01/2024]
Abstract
Mosquitoes are significant vectors of various pathogens. Unlike vertebrates, insects rely solely on innate immunity. Hemocytes play a crucial role in the cellular part of the innate immune system. The gaseous radical nitric oxide (NO) produced by hemocytes acts against pathogens and also functions as a versatile transmitter in both the immune and nervous systems, utilizing cyclic guanosine monophosphate (cGMP) as a second messenger. This study conducted a parallel comparison of NO synthase (NOS) expression and NO production in hemocytes during Escherichia coli K12 infection in four vector species: Aedes aegypti, Aedes albopictus, Culex pipiens molestus, and Culex pipiens quinquefasciatus. Increased NOS expression by NADPH diaphorase (NADPHd) staining and NO production by immunofluorescence against the by-product L-citrulline were observed in infected mosquito hemocytes distributed throughout the abdomens. NADPHd activity and citrulline labeling were particularly found in periostial hemocytes near the heart, but also on the ventral nerve chord (VNC). Pericardial cells of Ae. aegypti and Cx. p. molestus showed increased citrulline immunofluorescence, suggesting their involvement in the immune response. Oenocytes displayed strong NADPHd and citrulline labeling independent of infection status. This comparative study, consistent with findings in other species, suggests a widespread phenomenon of NO's role in hemocyte responses during E. coli infection. Found differences within and between genera highlight the importance of species-specific investigations.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stella Bergmann
- Institute for Physiology and Cell Biology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, 30173, Hannover, Germany
| | - Emily Graf
- Institute for Physiology and Cell Biology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, 30173, Hannover, Germany
| | - Pascal Hoffmann
- Institute for Physiology and Cell Biology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, 30173, Hannover, Germany
| | - Stefanie C Becker
- Institute for Parasitology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, 30559, Hannover, Germany
| | - Michael Stern
- Institute for Physiology and Cell Biology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, 30173, Hannover, Germany.
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4
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Li M, Zhou Y, Cheng J, Wang Y, Lan C, Shen Y. Response of the mosquito immune system and symbiotic bacteria to pathogen infection. Parasit Vectors 2024; 17:69. [PMID: 38368353 PMCID: PMC10874582 DOI: 10.1186/s13071-024-06161-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2023] [Accepted: 01/24/2024] [Indexed: 02/19/2024] Open
Abstract
Mosquitoes are the deadliest animal in the word, transmitting a variety of insect-borne infectious diseases, such as malaria, dengue fever, yellow fever, and Zika, causing more deaths than any other vector-borne pathogen. Moreover, in the absence of effective drugs and vaccines to prevent and treat insect-borne diseases, mosquito control is particularly important as the primary measure. In recent decades, due to the gradual increase in mosquito resistance, increasing attention has fallen on the mechanisms and effects associated with pathogen infection. This review provides an overview of mosquito innate immune mechanisms in terms of physical and physiological barriers, pattern recognition receptors, signalling pathways, and cellular and humoral immunity, as well as the antipathogenic effects of mosquito symbiotic bacteria. This review contributes to an in-depth understanding of the interaction process between mosquitoes and pathogens and provides a theoretical basis for biological defence strategies against mosquito-borne infectious diseases.
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Affiliation(s)
- Manjin Li
- The Affiliated Wuxi Center for Disease Control and Prevention of Nanjing Medical University, Wuxi Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Wuxi, 214023, China
| | - Yang Zhou
- Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, 211166, China
| | - Jin Cheng
- The Affiliated Wuxi Center for Disease Control and Prevention of Nanjing Medical University, Wuxi Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Wuxi, 214023, China
| | - Yiqing Wang
- The Affiliated Wuxi Center for Disease Control and Prevention of Nanjing Medical University, Wuxi Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Wuxi, 214023, China
| | - Cejie Lan
- The Affiliated Wuxi Center for Disease Control and Prevention of Nanjing Medical University, Wuxi Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Wuxi, 214023, China.
| | - Yuan Shen
- The Affiliated Wuxi Center for Disease Control and Prevention of Nanjing Medical University, Wuxi Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Wuxi, 214023, China.
- Nanjing Medical University, Nanjing, 211166, China.
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5
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Martin LE, Hillyer JF. Higher temperature accelerates the aging-dependent weakening of the melanization immune response in mosquitoes. PLoS Pathog 2024; 20:e1011935. [PMID: 38198491 PMCID: PMC10805325 DOI: 10.1371/journal.ppat.1011935] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2023] [Revised: 01/23/2024] [Accepted: 01/01/2024] [Indexed: 01/12/2024] Open
Abstract
The body temperature of mosquitoes, like most insects, is dictated by the environmental temperature. Climate change is increasing the body temperature of insects and thereby altering physiological processes such as immune proficiency. Aging also alters insect physiology, resulting in the weakening of the immune system in a process called senescence. Although both temperature and aging independently affect the immune system, it is unknown whether temperature alters the rate of immune senescence. Here, we evaluated the independent and combined effects of temperature (27°C, 30°C and 32°C) and aging (1, 5, 10 and 15 days old) on the melanization immune response of the adult female mosquito, Anopheles gambiae. Using a spectrophotometric assay that measures phenoloxidase activity (a rate limiting enzyme) in hemolymph, and therefore, the melanization potential of the mosquito, we discovered that the strength of melanization decreases with higher temperature, aging, and infection. Moreover, when the temperature is higher, the aging-dependent decline in melanization begins at a younger age. Using an optical assay that measures melanin deposition on the abdominal wall and in the periostial regions of the heart, we found that melanin is deposited after infection, that this deposition decreases with aging, and that this aging-dependent decline is accelerated by higher temperature. This study demonstrates that higher temperature accelerates immune senescence in mosquitoes, with higher temperature uncoupling physiological age from chronological age. These findings highlight the importance of investigating the consequences of climate change on how disease transmission by mosquitoes is affected by aging.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lindsay E. Martin
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
| | - Julián F. Hillyer
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tennessee, United States of America
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Bergmann S, Bohn MC, Dornbusch S, Becker SC, Stern M. Influence of RVFV Infection on Olfactory Perception and Behavior in Drosophila melanogaster. Pathogens 2023; 12:pathogens12040558. [PMID: 37111444 PMCID: PMC10142484 DOI: 10.3390/pathogens12040558] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/27/2023] [Revised: 03/31/2023] [Accepted: 04/03/2023] [Indexed: 04/08/2023] Open
Abstract
In blood-feeding dipterans, olfaction plays a role in finding hosts and, hence, in spreading pathogens. Several pathogens are known to alter olfactory responses and behavior in vectors. As a mosquito-borne pathogen, Rift Valley Fever Virus (RVFV) can affect humans and cause great losses in livestock. We test the influence of RVFV infection on sensory perception, olfactory choice behavior and activity on a non-biting insect, Drosophila melanogaster, using electroantennograms (EAG), Y-maze, and locomotor activity monitor. Flies were injected with RVFV MP12 strain. Replication of RVFV and its persistence for at least seven days was confirmed by quantitative reverse transcription-PCR (RT-qPCR). One day post injection, infected flies showed weaker EAG responses towards 1-hexanol, vinegar, and ethyl acetate. In the Y-maze, infected flies showed a significantly lower response for 1-hexanol compared to uninfected flies. At days six or seven post infection, no significant difference between infected and control flies could be found in EAG or Y-maze anymore. Activity of infected flies was reduced at both time points. We found an upregulation of the immune-response gene, nitric oxide synthase, in infected flies. An infection with RVFV is able to transiently reduce olfactory perception and attraction towards food-related odors in Drosophila, while effects on activity and immune effector gene expression persist. A similar effect in blood-feeding insects could affect vector competence in RVFV transmitting dipterans.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stella Bergmann
- Institute for Physiology and Cell Biology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, 30173 Hannover, Germany
| | - Maja C. Bohn
- Institute for Physiology and Cell Biology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, 30173 Hannover, Germany
| | - Susann Dornbusch
- Institute for Parasitology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, 30559 Hannover, Germany
| | - Stefanie C. Becker
- Institute for Parasitology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, 30559 Hannover, Germany
| | - Michael Stern
- Institute for Physiology and Cell Biology, University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, 30173 Hannover, Germany
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7
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Ma L, Yan X, Zhou L, Wang W, Chen K, Hao C, Lu Z, Qie X. Nitric oxide synthase is required for the pea aphid's defence against bacterial infection. INSECT MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2023; 32:187-199. [PMID: 36527288 DOI: 10.1111/imb.12823] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/27/2022] [Accepted: 12/09/2022] [Indexed: 06/17/2023]
Abstract
Compared to other insects, the pea aphid Acyrthosiphon pisum has a reduced immune system with an absence of genes coding for a lot of immunity-related molecules. Notably, nitric oxide synthase (NOS), which catalyses the synthesis of nitric oxide (NO), is present in the pea aphid. However, the role of NO in the immune system of pea aphid remains unclear. In this study, we explored the role of NO in the defence of the pea aphid against bacterial infections and found that the NOS gene of the pea aphid responded to an immune challenge, with the expression of ApNOS observably upregulated after bacterial infections. Knockdown of ApNOS using RNA interference or inhibition of NOS activity increased the number of live bacterial cells in aphids and the mortality of aphids after bacterial infection. Conversely, the increase in NO level in aphids using NO donor inhibited the bacterial growth, increased the survival of bacteria-infected aphids, and upregulated immune genes, such as Toll pathway and phagocytosis related genes. Thus, NO promotes immune responses and plays an important role in the immune system of pea aphid.
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Affiliation(s)
- Li Ma
- Department of Plant Protection, College of Plant Protection, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taigu, China
| | - Xizhong Yan
- Department of Plant Protection, College of Plant Protection, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taigu, China
| | - Lin Zhou
- Department of Entomology, College of Plant Protection, Northwest A & F University, Yangling, China
| | - Wentao Wang
- Department of Plant Protection, College of Plant Protection, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taigu, China
| | - Kangkang Chen
- Department of Plant Protection, College of Horticulture and Plant Protection, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, China
| | - Chi Hao
- Department of Plant Protection, College of Plant Protection, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taigu, China
| | - Zhiqiang Lu
- Department of Entomology, College of Plant Protection, Northwest A & F University, Yangling, China
- Key Laboratory of Integrated Pest Management on Crops in Northwestern Loess, Ministry of Agriculture, Northwest A & F University, Yangling, China
| | - Xingtao Qie
- Department of Plant Protection, College of Plant Protection, Shanxi Agricultural University, Taigu, China
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8
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The immunotoxicity of ten insecticides against insect hemocyte cells in vitro. In Vitro Cell Dev Biol Anim 2022; 58:912-921. [PMID: 36443536 DOI: 10.1007/s11626-022-00738-y] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/25/2022] [Accepted: 11/04/2022] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Hemocytes in the hemolymph of insects perform innate immunity, but systematic studies to compare immunotoxicity of pesticides on hemocytes are still few. In this study, an insect hemocyte system was used to assess the impact of pesticides with different modes of action, which included loss of cell viability, inhibition of hemophagocytosis, and reduction of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) activity. Results showed that piericidin A was the most cytotoxic to hemocytes, chlorfluazuron and hexaflumuron were the next. Also, piericidin A, chlorfenapyr, and fipronil had strong inhibitory effects on hemophagocytosis, and the effects of piericidin A and chlorfenapyr were persistent, while that of fipronil was short-lived. Moreover, fenoxycarb and hexaflumuron selectively inhibited granulocyte phagocytosis, tebufenozide only showed inhibition on plasmatocyte phagocytosis, but both inhibitory effects were transient. Furthermore, fenoxycarb and hexaflumuron showed a short-term strong inhibitory effect on the activity of NOS, chlorfenapyr and piericidin A showed a weak induction of NOS activity, while other pesticides exhibited a strong induction. Taken together, piericidin A was the most toxic and imidacloprid was the least toxic to hemocytes, and the alterations in hemocyte functions compromised immunity.
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Kotlyarov S. Immune Function of Endothelial Cells: Evolutionary Aspects, Molecular Biology and Role in Atherogenesis. Int J Mol Sci 2022; 23:ijms23179770. [PMID: 36077168 PMCID: PMC9456046 DOI: 10.3390/ijms23179770] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 12.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/25/2022] [Revised: 08/23/2022] [Accepted: 08/25/2022] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Atherosclerosis is one of the key problems of modern medicine, which is due to the high prevalence of atherosclerotic cardiovascular diseases and their significant share in the structure of morbidity and mortality in many countries. Atherogenesis is a complex chain of events that proceeds over many years in the vascular wall with the participation of various cells. Endothelial cells are key participants in vascular function. They demonstrate involvement in the regulation of vascular hemodynamics, metabolism, and innate immunity, which act as leading links in the pathogenesis of atherosclerosis. These endothelial functions have close connections and deep evolutionary roots, a better understanding of which will improve the prospects of early diagnosis and effective treatment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Stanislav Kotlyarov
- Department of Nursing, Ryazan State Medical University, 390026 Ryazan, Russia
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10
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Ramakrishnan A, Hillyer JF. Silencing Transglutaminase Genes TGase2 and TGase3 Has Infection-Dependent Effects on the Heart Rate of the Mosquito Anopheles gambiae. INSECTS 2022; 13:582. [PMID: 35886758 PMCID: PMC9315499 DOI: 10.3390/insects13070582] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/04/2022] [Revised: 06/18/2022] [Accepted: 06/22/2022] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
Transglutaminases are pleiotropic enzymes that in mosquitoes participate in the formation of the mating plug and the wound-induced antimalarial response. Moreover, one transglutaminase, TGase3, negatively regulates the infection-induced aggregation of hemocytes on the heart. Given that TGase3 is an inhibitor of periostial hemocyte aggregation, we used RNAi-based gene silencing followed by intravital video imaging to scrutinize whether any of the three transglutaminases encoded in the genome of the mosquito, Anopheles gambiae, play a role in modulating the heart rate of uninfected and infected mosquitoes. Initially, we confirmed that an infection decreases the heart rate. Then, we uncovered that silencing TGase1 does not impact heart physiology, but silencing TGase2 results in a constant heart rate regardless of infection status, eliminating the infection-induced decrease in the heart rate. Finally, silencing TGase3 decreases the heart rate in uninfected mosquitoes but increases the heart rate in infected mosquitoes. We conclude that TGase2 and TGase3 modulate heart physiology and demonstrate that factors not classically associated with insect circulatory physiology are involved in the functional integration of the immune and circulatory systems of mosquitoes.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Julián F. Hillyer
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA;
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11
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Chen K, Wang X, Wei X, Chen J, Wei Y, Jiang H, Lu Z, Feng C. Nitric Oxide-Induced Calcineurin A Mediates Antimicrobial Peptide Production Through the IMD Pathway. Front Immunol 2022; 13:905419. [PMID: 35663981 PMCID: PMC9157438 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2022.905419] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/27/2022] [Accepted: 04/20/2022] [Indexed: 12/22/2022] Open
Abstract
Nitric oxide (NO) at a high concentration is an effector to kill pathogens during insect immune responses, it also functions as a second messenger at a low concentration to regulate antimicrobial peptide (AMP) production in insects. Drosophila calcineurin subunit CanA1 is a ubiquitous serine/threonine protein phosphatase involved in NO-induced AMP production. However, it is unclear how NO regulates AMP expression. In this study, we used a lepidopteran pest Ostrinia furnacalis and Drosophila S2 cells to investigate how NO signaling affects the AMP production. Bacterial infections upregulated the transcription of nitric oxide synthase 1/2 (NOS1/2), CanA and AMP genes and increased NO concentration in larval hemolymph. Inhibition of NOS or CanA activity reduced the survival of bacteria-infected O. furnacalis. NO donor increased NO level in plasma and upregulated the production of CanA and certain AMPs. In S2 cells, killed Escherichia coli induced NOS transcription and boosted NO production, whereas knockdown of NOS blocked the NO level increase caused by E. coli. As in O. furnacalis larvae, supplementation of the NO donor increased NO level in the culture medium and AMP expression in S2 cells. Suppression of the key pathway genes showed that the IMD (but not Toll) pathway was involved in the upregulation of CecropinA1, Defensin, Diptericin, and Drosomycin by killed E. coli. Knockdown of NOS also reduced the expression of CanA1 and AMPs induced by E. coli, indicative of a role of NO in the AMP expression. Furthermore, CanA1 RNA interference and inhibition of its phosphatase activity significantly reduced NO-induced AMP expression, and knockdown of IMD suppressed NO-induced AMP expression. Together, these results suggest that NO-induced AMP production is mediated by CanA1 via the IMD pathway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kangkang Chen
- Department of Plant Protection, College of Horticulture and Plant Protection, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, China
| | - Xinyan Wang
- Department of Plant Protection, College of Horticulture and Plant Protection, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, China
| | - Xiangyi Wei
- Department of Plant Protection, College of Horticulture and Plant Protection, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, China
| | - Jiaqian Chen
- Department of Plant Protection, College of Horticulture and Plant Protection, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, China
| | - Youheng Wei
- Department of Biotechnology, College of Bioscience and Biotechnology, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, China
| | - Haobo Jiang
- Department of Entomology and Plant Pathology, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, United States
| | - Zhiqiang Lu
- Department of Entomology, College of Plant Protection, Northwest A&F University, Yangling, China
| | - Congjing Feng
- Department of Plant Protection, College of Horticulture and Plant Protection, Yangzhou University, Yangzhou, China
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12
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Reyes-Rivera J, Wu Y, Guthrie BG, Marletta MA, King N, Brunet T. Nitric oxide signaling controls collective contractions in a colonial choanoflagellate. Curr Biol 2022; 32:2539-2547.e5. [DOI: 10.1016/j.cub.2022.04.017] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/19/2022] [Revised: 04/04/2022] [Accepted: 04/07/2022] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
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13
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Liang X, Luo X, Lin H, Han F, Qin JG, Chen L, Xu C, Li E. Effects and Mechanism of Different Phospholipid Diets on Ovary Development in Female Broodstock Pacific White Shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei. Front Nutr 2022; 9:830934. [PMID: 35252307 PMCID: PMC8894211 DOI: 10.3389/fnut.2022.830934] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/07/2021] [Accepted: 01/19/2022] [Indexed: 01/15/2023] Open
Abstract
Research on nutrition and feed development for the broodstock of the Pacific white shrimp, Litopenaeus vannamei, is rare, and a poor broodstock quality is a critical factor restricting the seed supply in shrimp farming. As an essential nutrient for the gonadal development of L. vannamei, one control diet (no phospholipid) and three typical phospholipids (soybean lecithin, egg yolk lecithin, and krill oil) were evaluated in a semipurified diet of 4% phospholipid for a 28-day trial (initial weight 34.7 ± 4.2 g). Dietary phospholipid supplementation significantly promoted the ovarian maturation of female L. vannamei. Compared with soybean lecithin and egg yolk lecithin, krill oil showed the best positive results. Shrimp fed with a diet krill oil has obtained a significantly higher gonadosomatic index, yolk particle deposition, lipid accumulation, and estrogen secretion than from other sources. Ovary lipidomic analysis showed that the krill oil enriched the lipid composition of the ovary. The “glycerophospholipid metabolism” and “sphingolipid metabolism” pathways were significantly varied via topological pathway analysis. Genes and hub genes, with significantly different expression levels, were significantly enriched in the “fatty acid metabolism pathway,” “glycerophospholipid metabolism,” and “arachidonic acid metabolism” pathways by transcriptomic analysis. Correlation analysis of the transcriptome and lipidomics showed that the differential gene “hormone-sensitive lipase-like” (HSL) was positively correlated with various lipids [triglycerides (TG), phosphatidic acid (PA), phosphatidylserine (P), phosphatidylethanolamine (PE), glucosylceramide (GlcCer), phosphatidylglycerol (PG), and phosphatidylinositol (PI)] but was negatively correlated with diacylglycerol (DG), lysophosphatidylethanolamine (LPE), and sphingomyelin (SM). In conclusion, the dietary phospholipids, especially krill oil as a phospholipid source, can promote the development of L. vannamei ovaries by increasing the accumulation of nutrients such as triglycerides and sterols, and the secretion of estrogen or related hormones, such as estradiol and methylfarneside, by affecting the metabolism of glycerol phospholipids and some key fatty acids.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xiaolong Liang
- Key Laboratory of Tropical Hydrobiology and Biotechnology of Hainan Province, Hainan Aquaculture Breeding Engineering Research Center, College of Marine Sciences, Hainan University, Haikou, China
| | - Xiaolong Luo
- Key Laboratory of Tropical Hydrobiology and Biotechnology of Hainan Province, Hainan Aquaculture Breeding Engineering Research Center, College of Marine Sciences, Hainan University, Haikou, China
| | - Hongxing Lin
- Key Laboratory of Tropical Hydrobiology and Biotechnology of Hainan Province, Hainan Aquaculture Breeding Engineering Research Center, College of Marine Sciences, Hainan University, Haikou, China
| | - Fenglu Han
- Key Laboratory of Tropical Hydrobiology and Biotechnology of Hainan Province, Hainan Aquaculture Breeding Engineering Research Center, College of Marine Sciences, Hainan University, Haikou, China
| | - Jian G Qin
- School of Biological Sciences, Flinders University, Adelaide, SA, Australia
| | - Liqiao Chen
- School of Life Sciences, East China Normal University, Shanghai, China
| | - Chang Xu
- Key Laboratory of Tropical Hydrobiology and Biotechnology of Hainan Province, Hainan Aquaculture Breeding Engineering Research Center, College of Marine Sciences, Hainan University, Haikou, China
| | - Erchao Li
- Key Laboratory of Tropical Hydrobiology and Biotechnology of Hainan Province, Hainan Aquaculture Breeding Engineering Research Center, College of Marine Sciences, Hainan University, Haikou, China
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Huang Z, Zhang Y, Zheng X, Liu Z, Yao D, Zhao Y, Chen X, Aweya JJ. Functional characterization of arginine metabolic pathway enzymes in the antibacterial immune response of penaeid shrimp. DEVELOPMENTAL AND COMPARATIVE IMMUNOLOGY 2022; 127:104293. [PMID: 34648768 DOI: 10.1016/j.dci.2021.104293] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/30/2021] [Revised: 10/09/2021] [Accepted: 10/10/2021] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
Arginine metabolism pathway enzymes and products are important modulators of several physiological processes in animals, including immune response. Although some components of the arginine metabolic pathway have been reported in penaeid shrimps, no systematic study has explored all the key pathway enzymes involved in shrimp antimicrobial response. Here, we explored the role of the three key arginine metabolism enzymes (nitric-oxide synthase (NOS), arginase (ARG), agmatinase (AGM)) in Penaeus vannamei antimicrobial immunity. First, P. vannamei homologs of ARG and AGM (PvARG and PvAGM) were cloned and found to be evolutionally conserved with invertebrate counterparts. Transcript levels of PvARG, PvAGM, and PvNOS were ubiquitously expressed in healthy shrimp tissues and induced in hemocytes and hepatopancreas upon challenge with Gram-negative (Vibrio parahaemolyticus) and Gram-positive (Streptoccocus iniae) bacteria, suggesting their involvement in shrimp antimicrobial immune response. Besides, RNA interference knockdown and enzyme activity assay revealed an antagonistic relationship between PvARG/PvAGM and PvNOS, while this relationship was broken upon pathogen stimulation. Interestingly, knockdown of PvNOS increased Vibrio abundance in shrimp hemolymph, whereas knockdown of PvAGR reduced Vibrio abundance. Taken together, our present data shows that homologs of the key arginine metabolism pathway enzymes in penaeid shrimp (PvARG, PvAGM, and PvNOS) work synergistically and/or antagonistically to modulate antibacterial immune response.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zishu Huang
- Institute of Marine Sciences and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Marine Biotechnology, Shantou University, Shantou, 515063, China; STU-UMT Joint Shellfish Research Laboratory, Shantou University, Shantou, 515063, China
| | - Yueling Zhang
- Institute of Marine Sciences and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Marine Biotechnology, Shantou University, Shantou, 515063, China; STU-UMT Joint Shellfish Research Laboratory, Shantou University, Shantou, 515063, China; Southern Marine Science and Engineering Guangdong Laboratory, Guangzhou, 511458, China
| | - Xiaoyu Zheng
- Institute of Marine Sciences and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Marine Biotechnology, Shantou University, Shantou, 515063, China; STU-UMT Joint Shellfish Research Laboratory, Shantou University, Shantou, 515063, China
| | - Zhuoyan Liu
- Institute of Marine Sciences and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Marine Biotechnology, Shantou University, Shantou, 515063, China; STU-UMT Joint Shellfish Research Laboratory, Shantou University, Shantou, 515063, China
| | - Defu Yao
- Institute of Marine Sciences and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Marine Biotechnology, Shantou University, Shantou, 515063, China; STU-UMT Joint Shellfish Research Laboratory, Shantou University, Shantou, 515063, China
| | - Yongzhen Zhao
- Guangxi Academy of Fishery Sciences, Guangxi Key Laboratory of Aquatic Genetic Breeding and Healthy Aquaculture, Nanning, 530021, China
| | - Xiaohan Chen
- Guangxi Academy of Fishery Sciences, Guangxi Key Laboratory of Aquatic Genetic Breeding and Healthy Aquaculture, Nanning, 530021, China
| | - Jude Juventus Aweya
- Institute of Marine Sciences and Guangdong Provincial Key Laboratory of Marine Biotechnology, Shantou University, Shantou, 515063, China; STU-UMT Joint Shellfish Research Laboratory, Shantou University, Shantou, 515063, China.
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15
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NO Synthesis in Immune-Challenged Locust Hemocytes and Potential Signaling to the CNS. INSECTS 2021; 12:insects12100951. [PMID: 34680720 PMCID: PMC8539611 DOI: 10.3390/insects12100951] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/24/2021] [Revised: 10/13/2021] [Accepted: 10/15/2021] [Indexed: 01/22/2023]
Abstract
Simple Summary Insects, in the same way as vertebrates, are exposed to a broad variety of pathogens but lack their adaptive immune system. Relying on their innate immune system, they respond to pathogens by phagocytosis, melanization, and the synthesis of antimicrobial or cytotoxic compounds. In this study, we evaluated the production of the cytotoxic gaseous radical nitric oxide (NO) in hemocytes, the immune cells of the model insect Locusta migratoria in response to various immune stimuli. Both sessile and circulating hemocytes responded to gram-negative Escherichia coli and gram-positive Streptococcus suis injection with a strong increase in NO production. In contrast, the gram-positive bacterium Staphylococcus aureus elicited only a minor response. In addition, bacteria were encapsulated by hemocytes. Since NO is an important neurotransmitter, NO-producing hemocytes were tested on the locust central nervous system (CNS) in an embryo culture model. CNS neurons responded with a distinct increase in production of the second messenger, cGMP. This is indicative of the influence of the immune response on the CNS. Our findings show that NO production in hemocytes and capsule formation need complex stimuli and contribute to the understanding of neuroimmune interactions in insects. Abstract Similar to vertebrates, insects are exposed to a broad variety of pathogens. The innate insect immune system provides several response mechanisms such as phagocytosis, melanization, and the synthesis of antimicrobial or cytotoxic compounds. The cytotoxic nitric oxide (NO), which is also a neurotransmitter, is involved in the response to bacterial infections in various insects but has rarely been shown to be actually produced in hemocytes. We quantified the NO production in hemocytes of Locusta migratoria challenged with diverse immune stimuli by immunolabeling the by-product of NO synthesis, citrulline. Whereas in untreated adult locusts less than 5% of circulating hemocytes were citrulline-positive, the proportion rose to over 40% after 24 hours post injection of heat-inactivated bacteria. Hemocytes surrounded and melanized bacteria in locust nymphs by forming capsules. Such sessile hemocytes also produced NO. As in other insect species, activated hemocytes were found dorsally, close to the heart. In addition, we frequently observed citrulline-positive hemocytes and capsules near the ventral nerve cord. Neurites in the CNS of sterile locust embryos responded with elevation of the second messenger cGMP after contact with purified adult NO-producing hemocytes as revealed by immunofluorescence. We suggest that hemocytes can mediate a response in the CNS of an infected animal via the NO/cGMP signaling pathway.
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Reitmayer CM, Pathak AK, Harrington LC, Brindley MA, Cator LJ, Murdock CC. Sex, age, and parental harmonic convergence behavior affect the immune performance of Aedes aegypti offspring. Commun Biol 2021; 4:723. [PMID: 34117363 PMCID: PMC8196008 DOI: 10.1038/s42003-021-02236-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/27/2020] [Accepted: 05/14/2021] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Harmonic convergence is a potential cue, female mosquitoes use to choose male mates. However, very little is known about the benefits this choice confers to offspring performance. Using Aedes aegypti (an important vector of human disease), we investigated whether offspring of converging parental pairs showed differences in immune competence compared to offspring derived from non-converging parental pairs. Here we show that harmonic convergence, along with several other interacting factors (sex, age, reproductive, and physiological status), significantly shaped offspring immune responses (melanization and response to a bacterial challenge). Harmonic convergence had a stronger effect on the immune response of male offspring than on female offspring. Further, female offspring from converging parental pairs disseminated dengue virus more quickly than offspring derived from non-converging parental pairs. Our results provide insight into a wide range of selective pressures shaping mosquito immune function and could have important implications for disease transmission and control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christine M Reitmayer
- Department of Infectious Diseases, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
- Center for Tropical and Global Emerging Diseases, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
- The Pirbright Institute, Pirbright, Surrey, UK
| | - Ashutosh K Pathak
- Department of Infectious Diseases, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
- Center for Tropical and Global Emerging Diseases, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
| | - Laura C Harrington
- Department of Entomology, Cornell University, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Ithaca, NY, USA
- Northeast Center for Excellence for Vector-borne Disease Research, Ithaca, NY, USA
| | - Melinda A Brindley
- Department of Infectious Diseases, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
- Department of Population Health, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
- Center for Vaccines and Immunology, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
| | - Lauren J Cator
- Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, Ascot, UK
| | - Courtney C Murdock
- Department of Infectious Diseases, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA.
- Center for Tropical and Global Emerging Diseases, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA.
- Department of Entomology, Cornell University, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Ithaca, NY, USA.
- Northeast Center for Excellence for Vector-borne Disease Research, Ithaca, NY, USA.
- Center for Vaccines and Immunology, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA.
- Odum School of Ecology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA.
- Center for Ecology of Infectious Diseases, Odum School of Ecology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA.
- Riverbasin Center, Odum School of Ecology, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA.
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Kulkarni A, Pandey A, Trainor P, Carlisle S, Chhilar JS, Yu W, Moon A, Xu J. Trained Immunity in Anopheles gambiae: Antibacterial Immunity Is Enhanced by Priming via Sugar Meal Supplemented With a Single Gut Symbiotic Bacterial Strain. Front Microbiol 2021; 12:649213. [PMID: 33995307 PMCID: PMC8121176 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2021.649213] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/04/2021] [Accepted: 03/29/2021] [Indexed: 01/18/2023] Open
Abstract
Mosquitoes have evolved an effective innate immune system. The mosquito gut accommodates various microbes, which play a crucial role in shaping the mosquito immune system during evolution. The resident bacteria in the gut microbiota play an essential role in priming basal immunity. In this study, we show that antibacterial immunity in Anopheles gambiae can be enhanced by priming via a sugar meal supplemented with bacteria. Serratia fonticola S1 and Enterobacter sp. Ag1 are gut bacteria in mosquitoes. The intrathoracic injection of the two bacteria can result in an acute hemocoelic infection in the naïve mosquitoes with mortality of ∼40% at 24 h post-infection. However, the Enterobacter orSerratia primed mosquitoes showed a better 24 h survival upon the bacterial challenge. The priming confers the protection with a certain degree of specificity, the Enterobacter primed mosquitoes had a better survival upon the Enterobacter but not Serratia challenge, and the Serratia primed mosquitoes had a better survival upon the Serratia but not Enterobacter challenge. To understand the priming-mediated immune enhancement, the transcriptomes were characterized in the mosquitoes of priming as well as priming plus challenges. The RNA-seq was conducted to profile 10 transcriptomes including three samples of priming conditions (native microbiota, Serratia priming, and Enterobacter priming), six samples of priming plus challenges with the two bacteria, and one sample of injury control. The three priming regimes resulted in distinctive transcriptomic profiles with about 60% of genes affected by both bacteria. Upon challenges, different primed mosquitoes displayed different transcriptomic patterns in response to different bacteria. When a primed cohort was challenged with a heterogenous bacterium, more responsive genes were observed than when challenged with a homogenous bacterium. As expected, many canonical immune genes were responsive to the priming and challenge, but much more non-immune genes with various functions were also responsive in the contexts, which implies that the prior priming triggers a delicately coordinated systemic regulation that results in an enhanced immunity against the subsequent challenge. Besides the participation of typical immune pathways, the transcriptome data suggest the involvement of lysosome and metabolism in the context. Overall, this study demonstrated a trained immunity via priming with bacteria in diet.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aditi Kulkarni
- Department of Biology, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM, United States
| | - Ashmita Pandey
- Department of Biology, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM, United States
| | - Patrick Trainor
- Department of Economics, Applied Statistics and International Business, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM, United States
| | - Samantha Carlisle
- Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM, United States
| | - Jainder S. Chhilar
- Department of Biology, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM, United States
| | - Wanqin Yu
- Department of Biology, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM, United States
| | - Alex Moon
- Department of Biology, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM, United States
| | - Jiannong Xu
- Department of Biology, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM, United States
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Kumari S, Chauhan C, Tevatiya S, Singla D, De TD, Sharma P, Thomas T, Rani J, Savargaonkar D, Pandey KC, Pande V, Dixit R. Genetic changes of Plasmodium vivax tempers host tissue-specific responses in Anopheles stephensi. CURRENT RESEARCH IN IMMUNOLOGY 2021; 2:12-22. [PMID: 35492403 PMCID: PMC9040150 DOI: 10.1016/j.crimmu.2021.02.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2020] [Revised: 01/13/2021] [Accepted: 02/14/2021] [Indexed: 02/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Recently, we showed how an early restriction of gut flora proliferation by Plasmodium vivax favors immune-suppression and Plasmodium survival in the gut lumen (Sharma et al., 2020). Here, we asked post gut invasion how P. vivax interacts with individual tissues such as the midgut, hemocyte, and salivary glands, and manages its survival in the mosquito host. Our data from tissue-specific comparative RNA-Seq analysis and extensive temporal/spatial expression profiling of selected mosquito transcripts in the uninfected and P. vivax infected mosquito’s tissues indicated that (i) a transient suppression of gut metabolic machinery by early oocysts; (ii) enriched expression of nutritional responsive proteins and immune proteins against late oocysts, together may ensure optimal parasite development and gut homeostasis restoration; (iii) pre-immune activation of hemocyte by early gut-oocysts infection via REL induction (p < 0.003); and altered expression of hemocyte-encoded immune proteins may cause rapid removal of free circulating sporozoites from hemolymph; (iv) while a strong suppression of salivary metabolic activities, and elevated expression of salivary specific secretory, as well as immune proteins together, may favor the long-term storage and survival of invaded sporozoites. Finally, our RNA-Seq-based discovery of 4449 transcripts of Plasmodium vivax origin, and their developmental stage-specific expression modulation in the corresponding infected mosquito tissues, predicts a possible mechanism of mosquito responses evasion by P. vivax. Conclusively, our system-wide RNA-Seq analysis provides the first genetic evidence of direct mosquito-Plasmodium interaction and establishes a functional correlation. System-wide RNASeq analysis discloses direct mosquito-Plasmodium vivax interaction and establishes a functional correlation. Discovery of 4449 transcripts specific to P. vivax developmental stages sheds light on possible immune evasion mechanisms. Upregulation of nutritional related transcripts ensures optimal late oocyst development and midgut homeostasis. Hemocyte activation by early oocysts ensure removal of free circulatory sporozoites by proliferating immune transcripts. Heightened levels of salivary immune transcripts show that an active local immune response restricts salivary invaded sporozoite
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Kumari S, Chauhan C, Tevatiya S, Singla D, De TD, Sharma P, Thomas T, Rani J, Savargaonkar D, Pandey KC, Pande V, Dixit R. Genetic changes of Plasmodium vivax tempers host tissue-specific responses in Anopheles stephensi. CURRENT RESEARCH IN IMMUNOLOGY 2021. [DOI: https:/doi.org/10.1016/j.crimmu.2021.02.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
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20
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Kumari S, Chauhan C, Tevatiya S, Singla D, De TD, Sharma P, Thomas T, Rani J, Savargaonkar D, Pandey KC, Pande V, Dixit R. Genetic changes of Plasmodium vivax tempers host tissue-specific responses in Anopheles stephensi. CURRENT RESEARCH IN IMMUNOLOGY 2021. [DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.crimmu.2021.02.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/15/2023] Open
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21
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Evidence for Divergent Selection on Immune Genes between the African Malaria Vectors, Anopheles coluzzii and A. gambiae. INSECTS 2020; 11:insects11120893. [PMID: 33352887 PMCID: PMC7767042 DOI: 10.3390/insects11120893] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/28/2020] [Revised: 12/07/2020] [Accepted: 12/14/2020] [Indexed: 11/20/2022]
Abstract
Simple Summary A comparison of the genomes of the African malaria vectors, Anopheles gambiae and A. coluzzii, revealed that immune genes are highly diverged. Although these two species frequently co-occur within a single site, they occur in distinct larval habitats. Our results taken in the context of known differences in the larval habitats occupied by these taxa support the hypothesis that observed genetic divergence may be driven by immune response to microbial agents specific to these habitats. Strict within species mating may have subsequently evolved in part to maintain immunocompetence which might be compromised by dysregulation of immune pathways in hybrids. We conclude that the evolution of immune gene divergence among this important group of species may serve as a useful model to explore ecological speciation in general. Abstract During their life cycles, microbes infecting mosquitoes encounter components of the mosquito anti-microbial innate immune defenses. Many of these immune responses also mediate susceptibility to malaria parasite infection. In West Africa, the primary malaria vectors are Anopheles coluzzii and A. gambiae sensu stricto, which is subdivided into the Bamako and Savanna sub-taxa. Here, we performed whole genome comparisons of the three taxa as well as genotyping of 333 putatively functional SNPs located in 58 immune signaling genes. Genome data support significantly higher differentiation in immune genes compared with a randomly selected set of non-immune genes among the three taxa (permutation test p < 0.001). Among the 58 genes studied, the majority had one or more segregating mutations (72.9%) that were significantly diverged among the three taxa. Genes detected to be under selection include MAP2K4 and Raf. Despite the genome-wide distribution of immune genes, a high level of linkage disequilibrium (r2 > 0.8) was detected in over 27% of SNP pairs. We discuss the potential role of immune gene divergence as adaptations to the different larval habitats associated with A. gambiae taxa and as a potential force driving ecological speciation in this group of mosquitoes.
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22
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Estévez-Lao TY, Sigle LT, Gomez SN, Hillyer JF. Nitric oxide produced by periostial hemocytes modulates the bacterial infection-induced reduction of the mosquito heart rate. J Exp Biol 2020; 223:jeb225821. [PMID: 32561636 DOI: 10.1242/jeb.225821] [Citation(s) in RCA: 12] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/30/2020] [Accepted: 06/16/2020] [Indexed: 12/21/2022]
Abstract
The circulatory and immune systems of mosquitoes are functionally integrated. An infection induces the migration of hemocytes to the dorsal vessel, and specifically, to the regions surrounding the ostia of the heart. These periostial hemocytes phagocytose pathogens in the areas of the hemocoel that experience the highest hemolymph flow. Here, we investigated whether a bacterial infection affects cardiac rhythmicity in the African malaria mosquito, Anopheles gambiae We discovered that infection with Escherichia coli, Staphylococcus aureus and Staphylococcus epidermidis, but not Micrococcus luteus, reduces the mosquito heart rate and alters the proportional directionality of heart contractions. Infection does not alter the expression of genes encoding crustacean cardioactive peptide (CCAP), FMRFamide, corazonin, neuropeptide F or short neuropeptide F, indicating that they do not drive the cardiac phenotype. Infection upregulates the transcription of two superoxide dismutase (SOD) genes, catalase and a glutathione peroxidase, but dramatically induces upregulation of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) in both the heart and hemocytes. Within the heart, nitric oxide synthase is produced by periostial hemocytes, and chemically inhibiting the production of nitric oxide using l-NAME reverses the infection-induced cardiac phenotype. Finally, infection induces the upregulation of two lysozyme genes in the heart and other tissues, and treating mosquitoes with lysozyme reduces the heart rate in a manner reminiscent of the infection phenotype. These data demonstrate an exciting new facet of the integration between the immune and circulatory systems of insects, whereby a hemocyte-produced factor with immune activity, namely nitric oxide, modulates heart physiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tania Y Estévez-Lao
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
| | - Leah T Sigle
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
| | - Scherly N Gomez
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
| | - Julián F Hillyer
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37235, USA
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Powers JC, Turangan R, Joosse BA, Hillyer JF. Adult Mosquitoes Infected with Bacteria Early in Life Have Stronger Antimicrobial Responses and More Hemocytes after Reinfection Later in Life. INSECTS 2020; 11:insects11060331. [PMID: 32481519 PMCID: PMC7349202 DOI: 10.3390/insects11060331] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/07/2020] [Revised: 05/25/2020] [Accepted: 05/27/2020] [Indexed: 12/20/2022]
Abstract
The immunological strategies employed by insects to overcome infection vary with the type of infection and may change with experience. We investigated how a bacterial infection in the hemocoel of the African malaria mosquito, Anopheles gambiae, prepares the immune system to face a subsequent bacterial infection. For this, adult female mosquitoes were separated into three groups—unmanipulated, injured, or infected with Escherichia coli—and five days later all the mosquitoes were infected with a different strain of E. coli. We found that an injury or a bacterial infection early in life enhances the ability of mosquitoes to kill bacteria later in life. This protection results in higher mosquito survival and is associated with an increased hemocyte density, altered phagocytic activity by individual hemocytes, and the increased expression of nitric oxide synthase and perhaps prophenoloxidase 6. Protection from a second infection likely occurs because of heightened immune awareness due to an already existing infection instead of memory arising from an earlier, cured infection. This study highlights the dynamic nature of the mosquito immune response and how one infection prepares mosquitoes to survive a subsequent infection.
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King JG. Developmental and comparative perspectives on mosquito immunity. DEVELOPMENTAL AND COMPARATIVE IMMUNOLOGY 2020; 103:103458. [PMID: 31377103 DOI: 10.1016/j.dci.2019.103458] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2019] [Revised: 07/30/2019] [Accepted: 07/30/2019] [Indexed: 06/10/2023]
Abstract
Diseases spread by mosquitoes have killed more people than those spread by any other group of arthropod vectors and remain an important factor in determining global health and economic stability. The mosquito innate immune system can act to either modulate infection with human pathogens or fight off entomopathogens and increase the fitness and longevity of infected mosquitoes. While work remains towards understanding the larval immune system and the development of the mosquito immune system, it has recently become clearer that environmental factors heavily shape the developing mosquito immune system and continue to influence the adult immune system as well. The adult immune system has been well-studied and is known to involve multiple tissues and diverse molecular mechanisms. This review summarizes and synthesizes what is currently understood about the development of the mosquito immune system and includes comparisons of immune components unique to mosquitoes among the blood-feeding arthropods as well as important distinguishing factors between the anopheline and culicine mosquitoes. An explanation is included for how mosquito immunity factors into vector competence and vectorial capacity is presented along with a model for the interrelationships between nutrition, microbiome, pathogen interactions and behavior as they relate to mosquito development, immune status, adult female fitness and ultimately, vectorial capacity. Novel discoveries in the fields of mosquito ecoimmunology, neuroimmunology, and intracellular antiviral responses are highlighted.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonas G King
- Department of Biochemistry, Molecular Biology, Entomology and Plant Pathology, Mississippi State University, 32 Creelman Street, Dorman 402, Mississippi State, MS 39762, USA.
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25
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Chaves da Silva PG, Hsu K, Benton JL, Beltz BS, Allodi S. A Balancing Act: The Immune System Supports Neurodegeneration and Neurogenesis. Cell Mol Neurobiol 2020; 40:967-989. [PMID: 31980992 DOI: 10.1007/s10571-020-00787-5] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/05/2019] [Accepted: 01/04/2020] [Indexed: 01/08/2023]
Abstract
Decapod crustaceans, like mammals, retain the ability to make new neurons throughout life. In mammals, immune cells are closely associated with stem cells that generate adult-born neurons. In crayfish, evidence suggests that immune cells (hemocytes) originating in the immune system travel to neurogenic regions and transform into neural progenitor cells. This nontraditional immune activity takes place continuously under normal physiological conditions, but little is known under pathological conditions (neurodegeneration). In this study, the immune system and its relationship with neurogenesis were investigated during neurodegeneration (unilateral antennular ablation) in adult crayfish. Our experiments show that after ablation (1) Proliferating cells decrease in neurogenic areas of the adult crayfish brain; (2) The immune response, but not neurogenesis, is ablation-side dependent; (3) Inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) plays a crucial role in the neurogenic niche containing neural progenitors during the immune response; (4) Brain areas targeted by antennular projections respond acutely (15 min) to the lesion, increasing the number of local immune cells; (5) Immune cells are recruited to the area surrounding the ipsilateral neurogenic niche; and (6) The vasculature in the niche responds acutely by dilation and possibly also neovascularization. We conclude that immune cells are important in both neurodegeneration and neurogenesis by contributing in physiological conditions to the maintenance of the number of neural precursor cells in the neurogenic niche (neurogenesis), and in pathological conditions (neurodegeneration) by coordinating NO release and vascular responses associated with the neurogenic niche. Our data suggest that neural damage and recovery participate in a balance between these competing immune cell roles.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paula Grazielle Chaves da Silva
- Programa de Neurobiologia, Instituto de Biofísica Carlos Chagas Filho, Universidade Federal Do Rio de Janeiro, Ilha do Fundão, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, 21949-902, Brazil
- Wellesley College, Wellesley, MA, 02481, USA
| | - Kelly Hsu
- Wellesley College, Wellesley, MA, 02481, USA
| | | | | | - Silvana Allodi
- Programa de Neurobiologia, Instituto de Biofísica Carlos Chagas Filho, Universidade Federal Do Rio de Janeiro, Ilha do Fundão, Rio de Janeiro, RJ, 21949-902, Brazil.
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Negri P, Villalobos E, Szawarski N, Damiani N, Gende L, Garrido M, Maggi M, Quintana S, Lamattina L, Eguaras M. Towards Precision Nutrition: A Novel Concept Linking Phytochemicals, Immune Response and Honey Bee Health. INSECTS 2019; 10:E401. [PMID: 31726686 PMCID: PMC6920938 DOI: 10.3390/insects10110401] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/30/2019] [Revised: 11/02/2019] [Accepted: 11/05/2019] [Indexed: 02/07/2023]
Abstract
The high annual losses of managed honey bees (Apis mellifera) has attracted intensive attention, and scientists have dedicated much effort trying to identify the stresses affecting bees. There are, however, no simple answers; rather, research suggests multifactorial effects. Several works have been reported highlighting the relationship between bees' immunosuppression and the effects of malnutrition, parasites, pathogens, agrochemical and beekeeping pesticides exposure, forage dearth and cold stress. Here we analyze a possible connection between immunity-related signaling pathways that could be involved in the response to the stress resulted from Varroa-virus association and cold stress during winter. The analysis was made understanding the honey bee as a superorganism, where individuals are integrated and interacting within the colony, going from social to individual immune responses. We propose the term "Precision Nutrition" as a way to think and study bees' nutrition in the search for key molecules which would be able to strengthen colonies' responses to any or all of those stresses combined.
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Affiliation(s)
- Pedro Negri
- Centro de Investigación en Abejas Sociales (CIAS), Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata (UNMdP), Deán Funes 3350, Mar del Plata CP 7600, Argentina; (N.S.); (N.D.); (L.G.); (M.G.); (M.M.); (S.Q.); (M.E.)
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Godoy Cruz 2290, Buenos Aires C1425FQB, Argentina;
| | - Ethel Villalobos
- Plant and Environmental Protection Sciences, College of Tropical Agriculture and Human Resources, University of Hawaii at Manoa, 3050 Maile Way, 310 Gilmore Hall, Honolulu, HI 96822, USA;
| | - Nicolás Szawarski
- Centro de Investigación en Abejas Sociales (CIAS), Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata (UNMdP), Deán Funes 3350, Mar del Plata CP 7600, Argentina; (N.S.); (N.D.); (L.G.); (M.G.); (M.M.); (S.Q.); (M.E.)
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Godoy Cruz 2290, Buenos Aires C1425FQB, Argentina;
| | - Natalia Damiani
- Centro de Investigación en Abejas Sociales (CIAS), Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata (UNMdP), Deán Funes 3350, Mar del Plata CP 7600, Argentina; (N.S.); (N.D.); (L.G.); (M.G.); (M.M.); (S.Q.); (M.E.)
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Godoy Cruz 2290, Buenos Aires C1425FQB, Argentina;
| | - Liesel Gende
- Centro de Investigación en Abejas Sociales (CIAS), Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata (UNMdP), Deán Funes 3350, Mar del Plata CP 7600, Argentina; (N.S.); (N.D.); (L.G.); (M.G.); (M.M.); (S.Q.); (M.E.)
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Godoy Cruz 2290, Buenos Aires C1425FQB, Argentina;
| | - Melisa Garrido
- Centro de Investigación en Abejas Sociales (CIAS), Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata (UNMdP), Deán Funes 3350, Mar del Plata CP 7600, Argentina; (N.S.); (N.D.); (L.G.); (M.G.); (M.M.); (S.Q.); (M.E.)
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Godoy Cruz 2290, Buenos Aires C1425FQB, Argentina;
| | - Matías Maggi
- Centro de Investigación en Abejas Sociales (CIAS), Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata (UNMdP), Deán Funes 3350, Mar del Plata CP 7600, Argentina; (N.S.); (N.D.); (L.G.); (M.G.); (M.M.); (S.Q.); (M.E.)
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Godoy Cruz 2290, Buenos Aires C1425FQB, Argentina;
| | - Silvina Quintana
- Centro de Investigación en Abejas Sociales (CIAS), Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata (UNMdP), Deán Funes 3350, Mar del Plata CP 7600, Argentina; (N.S.); (N.D.); (L.G.); (M.G.); (M.M.); (S.Q.); (M.E.)
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Godoy Cruz 2290, Buenos Aires C1425FQB, Argentina;
| | - Lorenzo Lamattina
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Godoy Cruz 2290, Buenos Aires C1425FQB, Argentina;
- Instituto de Investigaciones Biológicas (IIB-CONICET), UNMdP, Dean Funes 3350, Mar del Plata CP 7600, Argentina
| | - Martin Eguaras
- Centro de Investigación en Abejas Sociales (CIAS), Universidad Nacional de Mar del Plata (UNMdP), Deán Funes 3350, Mar del Plata CP 7600, Argentina; (N.S.); (N.D.); (L.G.); (M.G.); (M.M.); (S.Q.); (M.E.)
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas (CONICET), Godoy Cruz 2290, Buenos Aires C1425FQB, Argentina;
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Paige AS, Bellamy SK, Alto BW, Dean CL, Yee DA. Linking nutrient stoichiometry to Zika virus transmission in a mosquito. Oecologia 2019; 191:1-10. [DOI: 10.1007/s00442-019-04429-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/07/2019] [Accepted: 05/28/2019] [Indexed: 10/26/2022]
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Dedkhad W, Christensen BM, Bartholomay LC, Joshi D, Hempolchom C, Saeung A. Immune responses of Aedes togoi, Anopheles paraliae and Anopheles lesteri against nocturnally subperiodic Brugia malayi microfilariae during migration from the midgut to the site of development. Parasit Vectors 2018; 11:528. [PMID: 30261926 PMCID: PMC6161340 DOI: 10.1186/s13071-018-3120-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/26/2018] [Accepted: 09/19/2018] [Indexed: 11/10/2022] Open
Abstract
Background Lymphatic filariasis is a mosquito-borne disease caused by filarioid nematodes. A comparative understanding of parasite biology and host-parasite interactions can provide information necessary for developing intervention programmes for vector control. Here, to understand such interactions, we choose highly susceptible filariasis vectors (Aedes togoi and Anopheles lesteri) as well as Anopheles paraliae, which has lower susceptibility, infected them with nocturnally subperiodic (NSP) Brugia malayi microfilariae (mf) and studied the exsheathment, migration and innate immune responses among them. Methods Mosquito-parasite relationships were systematically investigated from the time mf entered the midgut until they reached their development site in the thoracic musculature (12 time points). Results Results showed that exsheathment of B. malayi mf occurred in the midgut of all mosquito species and was completed within 24 h post-blood meal. The migration of B. malayi mf from the midgut to thoracic muscles of the highly susceptible mosquitoes Ae. togoi and An. lesteri was more rapid than in the low susceptibility mosquito, An. paraliae. Melanisation and degeneration, two distinct refractory phenotypes, of mf were found in the midgut, haemocoel and thoracic musculature of all mosquito species. Melanisation is a complex biochemical cascade that results in deposition of melanin pigment on a capsule around the worms. Also, some biological environments in the body are inhospitable to parasite development and cause direct toxicity that results in vacuolated or degenerated worms. Even though Ae. togoi is highly susceptible to B. malayi, melanisation responses against B. malayi mf were first noted in the haemocoel of Ae. togoi, followed by a degeneration process. In contrast, in An. lesteri and An. paraliae, the degeneration process occurred in the haemocoel and thoracic musculature prior to melanisation responses. Conclusion This study provides a thorough description of the comparative pathobiology of responses of mosquitoes against the filarial worm B. malayi.
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Affiliation(s)
- Watcharatip Dedkhad
- Graduate PhD's Degree Program in Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, 50200, Thailand
| | - Bruce M Christensen
- Department of Pathobiological Sciences, University of Wisconsin, 1656 Linden Drive, Madison, WI, 53706, USA
| | - Lyric C Bartholomay
- Department of Pathobiological Sciences, University of Wisconsin, 1656 Linden Drive, Madison, WI, 53706, USA
| | - Deepak Joshi
- Department of Entomology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, 40546-0091, USA
| | - Chayanit Hempolchom
- Graduate PhD's Degree Program in Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, 50200, Thailand
| | - Atiporn Saeung
- Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, 50200, Thailand.
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Kumar A, Srivastava P, Sirisena P, Dubey SK, Kumar R, Shrinet J, Sunil S. Mosquito Innate Immunity. INSECTS 2018; 9:insects9030095. [PMID: 30096752 PMCID: PMC6165528 DOI: 10.3390/insects9030095] [Citation(s) in RCA: 88] [Impact Index Per Article: 14.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2018] [Revised: 06/17/2018] [Accepted: 06/18/2018] [Indexed: 12/19/2022]
Abstract
Mosquitoes live under the endless threat of infections from different kinds of pathogens such as bacteria, parasites, and viruses. The mosquito defends itself by employing both physical and physiological barriers that resist the entry of the pathogen and the subsequent establishment of the pathogen within the mosquito. However, if the pathogen does gain entry into the insect, the insect mounts a vigorous innate cellular and humoral immune response against the pathogen, thereby limiting the pathogen's propagation to nonpathogenic levels. This happens through three major mechanisms: phagocytosis, melanization, and lysis. During these processes, various signaling pathways that engage intense mosquito⁻pathogen interactions are activated. A critical overview of the mosquito immune system and latest information about the interaction between mosquitoes and pathogens are provided in this review. The conserved, innate immune pathways and specific anti-pathogenic strategies in mosquito midgut, hemolymph, salivary gland, and neural tissues for the control of pathogen propagation are discussed in detail.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ankit Kumar
- Vector Borne Diseases Group, International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB), New Delhi-110067, India.
| | - Priyanshu Srivastava
- Vector Borne Diseases Group, International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB), New Delhi-110067, India.
| | - Pdnn Sirisena
- Vector Borne Diseases Group, International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB), New Delhi-110067, India.
| | - Sunil Kumar Dubey
- Vector Borne Diseases Group, International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB), New Delhi-110067, India.
| | - Ramesh Kumar
- Vector Borne Diseases Group, International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB), New Delhi-110067, India.
| | - Jatin Shrinet
- Vector Borne Diseases Group, International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB), New Delhi-110067, India.
| | - Sujatha Sunil
- Vector Borne Diseases Group, International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology (ICGEB), New Delhi-110067, India.
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Das De T, Sharma P, Thomas T, Singla D, Tevatiya S, Kumari S, Chauhan C, Rani J, Srivastava V, Kaur R, Pandey KC, Dixit R. Interorgan Molecular Communication Strategies of "Local" and "Systemic" Innate Immune Responses in Mosquito Anopheles stephensi. Front Immunol 2018. [PMID: 29515567 PMCID: PMC5826171 DOI: 10.3389/fimmu.2018.00148] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023] Open
Abstract
Mosquitoes that transmit many deadly infectious diseases also need to keep fighting against many microbial infections. Constitutive expression of multiple antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) in almost all body tissues is believed to facilitate the effective management of these local infections. When any infection breaches the local barrier, AMPs are induced rapidly in non-target tissues such as hemocytes (HCs) and establish their co-ordination with systemic immune effectors to clear off the body infection. But how interorgan immune communication is managed during local and systemic infections remain largely unknown. To understand this interorgan molecular relationship, we identified, extensively profiled and compared the expression of AMPs in three important mosquito tissues viz. midgut, fat body (FB), and HCs. dsRNA-mediated AMPs silencing suggests that mosquito tissues are able to manage an optimal expression of AMPs at the physiological level. We also examined the possible contribution of two important immune regulator genes relish (REL) and nitric oxide synthase, controlling AMPs expression in these tissues during local or systemic infections. We show that each tissue has a unique ability to respond to local/systemic challenges, but HCs are more specialized to recognize and discriminate-specific antigens than gut and FB. Our investigation also revealed that both REL and NO participate in the overall management of the interorgan immune responses, but at the same time each tissue also has its own ability to maintain the interorgan flow of signals. In our knowledge, this is the first large-scale study examining the interorgan immune relationship in the mosquito.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tanwee Das De
- Host-Parasite Interaction Biology Group, ICMR-National Institute of Malaria Research, New Delhi, India.,Department of Biotechnology, Delhi Technological University, Shahbad Daulatpur, New Delhi, India
| | - Punita Sharma
- Host-Parasite Interaction Biology Group, ICMR-National Institute of Malaria Research, New Delhi, India
| | - Tina Thomas
- Host-Parasite Interaction Biology Group, ICMR-National Institute of Malaria Research, New Delhi, India
| | - Deepak Singla
- Host-Parasite Interaction Biology Group, ICMR-National Institute of Malaria Research, New Delhi, India
| | - Sanjay Tevatiya
- Host-Parasite Interaction Biology Group, ICMR-National Institute of Malaria Research, New Delhi, India
| | - Seena Kumari
- Host-Parasite Interaction Biology Group, ICMR-National Institute of Malaria Research, New Delhi, India
| | - Charu Chauhan
- Host-Parasite Interaction Biology Group, ICMR-National Institute of Malaria Research, New Delhi, India
| | - Jyoti Rani
- Host-Parasite Interaction Biology Group, ICMR-National Institute of Malaria Research, New Delhi, India
| | - Vartika Srivastava
- Host-Parasite Interaction Biology Group, ICMR-National Institute of Malaria Research, New Delhi, India
| | - Ramandeep Kaur
- Host-Parasite Interaction Biology Group, ICMR-National Institute of Malaria Research, New Delhi, India
| | - Kailash C Pandey
- Department of Biochemistry, National Institute for Research in Environmental Health, Indian Council of Medical Research, Bhopal, India
| | - Rajnikant Dixit
- Host-Parasite Interaction Biology Group, ICMR-National Institute of Malaria Research, New Delhi, India
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Bartholomay LC, Michel K. Mosquito Immunobiology: The Intersection of Vector Health and Vector Competence. ANNUAL REVIEW OF ENTOMOLOGY 2018; 63:145-167. [PMID: 29324042 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-ento-010715-023530] [Citation(s) in RCA: 57] [Impact Index Per Article: 9.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/07/2023]
Abstract
As holometabolous insects that occupy distinct aquatic and terrestrial environments in larval and adult stages and utilize hematophagy for nutrient acquisition, mosquitoes are subjected to a wide variety of symbiotic interactions. Indeed, mosquitoes play host to endosymbiotic, entomopathogenic, and mosquito-borne organisms, including protozoa, viruses, bacteria, fungi, fungal-like organisms, and metazoans, all of which trigger and shape innate infection-response capacity. Depending on the infection or interaction, the mosquito may employ, for example, cellular and humoral immune effectors for septic infections in the hemocoel, humoral infection responses in the midgut lumen, and RNA interference and programmed cell death for intracellular pathogens. These responses often function in concert, regardless of the infection type, and provide a robust front to combat infection. Mosquito-borne pathogens and entomopathogens overcome these immune responses, employing avoidance or suppression strategies. Burgeoning methodologies are capitalizing on this concerted deployment of immune responses to control mosquito-borne disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lyric C Bartholomay
- Department of Pathobiological Sciences, School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Wisconsin 53706;
| | - Kristin Michel
- Division of Biology, Kansas State University, Manhattan, Kansas 66506;
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League GP, Estévez-Lao TY, Yan Y, Garcia-Lopez VA, Hillyer JF. Anopheles gambiae larvae mount stronger immune responses against bacterial infection than adults: evidence of adaptive decoupling in mosquitoes. Parasit Vectors 2017; 10:367. [PMID: 28764812 PMCID: PMC5539753 DOI: 10.1186/s13071-017-2302-6] [Citation(s) in RCA: 37] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/09/2017] [Accepted: 07/20/2017] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND The immune system of adult mosquitoes has received significant attention because of the ability of females to vector disease-causing pathogens while ingesting blood meals. However, few studies have focused on the immune system of larvae, which, we hypothesize, is highly robust due to the high density and diversity of microorganisms that larvae encounter in their aquatic environments and the strong selection pressures at work in the larval stage to ensure survival to reproductive maturity. Here, we surveyed a broad range of cellular and humoral immune parameters in larvae of the malaria mosquito, Anopheles gambiae, and compared their potency to that of newly-emerged adults and older adults. RESULTS We found that larvae kill bacteria in their hemocoel with equal or greater efficiency compared to newly-emerged adults, and that antibacterial ability declines further with adult age, indicative of senescence. This phenotype correlates with more circulating hemocytes and a differing spatial arrangement of sessile hemocytes in larvae relative to adults, as well as with the individual hemocytes of adults carrying a greater phagocytic burden. The hemolymph of larvae also possesses markedly stronger antibacterial lytic and melanization activity than the hemolymph of adults. Finally, infection induces a stronger transcriptional upregulation of immunity genes in larvae than in adults, including differences in the immunity genes that are regulated. CONCLUSIONS These results demonstrate that immunity is strongest in larvae and declines after metamorphosis and with adult age, and suggest that adaptive decoupling, or the independent evolution of larval and adult traits made possible by metamorphosis, has occurred in the mosquito lineage.
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Affiliation(s)
- Garrett P. League
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN USA
| | | | - Yan Yan
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN USA
| | | | - Julián F. Hillyer
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN USA
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Liew JW, Fong MY, Lau YL. Quantitative real-time PCR analysis of Anopheles dirus TEP1 and NOS during Plasmodium berghei infection, using three reference genes. PeerJ 2017; 5:e3577. [PMID: 28761783 PMCID: PMC5533154 DOI: 10.7717/peerj.3577] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/28/2017] [Accepted: 06/23/2017] [Indexed: 01/12/2023] Open
Abstract
Quantitative reverse transcription PCR (qRT-PCR) has been an integral part of characterizing the immunity of Anopheles mosquitoes towards Plasmodium invasion. Two anti-Plasmodium factors of Anopheles, thioester-containing protein 1 (TEP1) and nitric oxide synthase (NOS), play a role in the refractoriness of Anopheles towards Plasmodium infection and are generally expressed during infection. However, these are less studied in Anopheles dirus, a dominant malaria vector in Southeast Asia. Furthermore, most studies used a single reference gene for normalization during gene expression analysis without proper validation. This may lead to erroneous quantification of expression levels. Therefore, the present study characterized and investigated the expression profiles of TEP1 and NOS of Anopheles dirus during P. berghei infection. Prior to that, the elongation factor 1-alpha (EF1), actin 1 (Act) and ribosomal protein S7 (S7) genes were validated for their suitability as a set of reference genes. TEP1 and NOS expressions in An. dirus were found to be significantly induced after P. berghei infection.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jonathan W.K. Liew
- Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
| | - Mun Yik Fong
- Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
| | - Yee Ling Lau
- Department of Parasitology, Faculty of Medicine, University of Malaya, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
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vanEngelsdorp D, Traynor KS, Andree M, Lichtenberg EM, Chen Y, Saegerman C, Cox-Foster DL. Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) and bee age impact honey bee pathophysiology. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0179535. [PMID: 28715431 PMCID: PMC5513415 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0179535] [Citation(s) in RCA: 34] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/29/2016] [Accepted: 05/31/2017] [Indexed: 01/02/2023] Open
Abstract
Honey bee (Apis mellifera) colonies continue to experience high annual losses that remain poorly explained. Numerous interacting factors have been linked to colony declines. Understanding the pathways linking pathophysiology with symptoms is an important step in understanding the mechanisms of disease. In this study we examined the specific pathologies associated with honey bees collected from colonies suffering from Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) and compared these with bees collected from apparently healthy colonies. We identified a set of pathological physical characteristics that occurred at different rates in CCD diagnosed colonies prior to their collapse: rectum distension, Malpighian tubule iridescence, fecal matter consistency, rectal enteroliths (hard concretions), and venom sac color. The multiple differences in rectum symptomology in bees from CCD apiaries and colonies suggest effected bees had trouble regulating water. To ensure that pathologies we found associated with CCD were indeed pathologies and not due to normal changes in physical appearances that occur as an adult bee ages (CCD colonies are assumed to be composed mostly of young bees), we documented the changes in bees of different ages taken from healthy colonies. We found that young bees had much greater incidences of white nodules than older cohorts. Prevalent in newly-emerged bees, these white nodules or cellular encapsulations indicate an active immune response. Comparing the two sets of characteristics, we determined a subset of pathologies that reliably predict CCD status rather than bee age (fecal matter consistency, rectal distension size, rectal enteroliths and Malpighian tubule iridescence) and that may serve as biomarkers for colony health. In addition, these pathologies suggest that CCD bees are experiencing disrupted excretory physiology. Our identification of these symptoms is an important first step in understanding the physiological pathways that underlie CCD and factors impacting bee health.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dennis vanEngelsdorp
- Department of Entomology, Plant Science Building University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, United States of America
| | - Kirsten S. Traynor
- Department of Entomology, Plant Science Building University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, United States of America
| | - Michael Andree
- Cooperative Extension Butte County, University of California Cooperative Extension, Oroville, California, United States of America
| | - Elinor M. Lichtenberg
- Department of Entomology, Plant Science Building University of Maryland, College Park, Maryland, United States of America
- Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, The University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona, United States of America
| | - Yanping Chen
- USDA-ARS, Bee Research Laboratory, Beltsville, Maryland, United States of America
| | - Claude Saegerman
- Research Unit in Epidemiology and Risk Analysis applied to Veterinary Sciences (UREAR-ULg), Fundamental and Applied Research for Animal and Health (FARAH) Center, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Liège, Liège, Sart-Tilman, Belgium
| | - Diana L. Cox-Foster
- USDA-ARS-PWA, Pollinating Insect-Biol., Mgmt. Syst.- Research Unit, Logan, Utah, United States of America and Department of Entomology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, Pennsylvania, United States of America
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Angleró-Rodríguez YI, Blumberg BJ, Dong Y, Sandiford SL, Pike A, Clayton AM, Dimopoulos G. A natural Anopheles-associated Penicillium chrysogenum enhances mosquito susceptibility to Plasmodium infection. Sci Rep 2016; 6:34084. [PMID: 27678168 PMCID: PMC5039729 DOI: 10.1038/srep34084] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2016] [Accepted: 09/06/2016] [Indexed: 12/31/2022] Open
Abstract
Whereas studies have extensively examined the ability of bacteria to influence Plasmodium infection in the mosquito, the tripartite interactions between non-entomopathogenic fungi, mosquitoes, and Plasmodium parasites remain largely uncharacterized. Here we report the isolation of a common mosquito-associated ascomycete fungus, Penicillium chrysogenum, from the midgut of field-caught Anopheles mosquitoes. Although the presence of Pe. chrysogenum in the Anopheles gambiae midgut does not affect mosquito survival, it renders the mosquito significantly more susceptible to Plasmodium infection through a secreted heat-stable factor. We further provide evidence that the mechanism of the fungus-mediated modulation of mosquito susceptibility to Plasmodium involves an upregulation of the insect’s ornithine decarboxylase gene, which sequesters arginine for polyamine biosynthesis. Arginine plays an important role in the mosquito’s anti-Plasmodium defense as a substrate of nitric oxide production, and its availability therefore has a direct impact on the mosquito’s susceptibility to the parasite. While this type of immunomodulatory mechanism has already been demonstrated in other host-pathogen interaction systems, this is the first report of a mosquito-associated fungus that can suppress the mosquito’s innate immune system in a way that would favor Plasmodium infection and possibly malaria transmission.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yesseinia I Angleró-Rodríguez
- W. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N Wolfe St., Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Benjamin J Blumberg
- W. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N Wolfe St., Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Yuemei Dong
- W. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N Wolfe St., Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Simone L Sandiford
- W. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N Wolfe St., Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - Andrew Pike
- W. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N Wolfe St., Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - April M Clayton
- W. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N Wolfe St., Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
| | - George Dimopoulos
- W. Harry Feinstone Department of Molecular Microbiology and Immunology, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, 615 N Wolfe St., Baltimore, MD 21205, USA
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Xu J, Morisseau C, Yang J, Lee KSS, Kamita SG, Hammock BD. Ingestion of the epoxide hydrolase inhibitor AUDA modulates immune responses of the mosquito, Culex quinquefasciatus during blood feeding. INSECT BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2016; 76:62-69. [PMID: 27369469 PMCID: PMC5010450 DOI: 10.1016/j.ibmb.2016.06.011] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2016] [Revised: 06/20/2016] [Accepted: 06/21/2016] [Indexed: 05/14/2023]
Abstract
Epoxide hydrolases (EHs) are enzymes that play roles in metabolizing xenobiotic epoxides from the environment, and in regulating lipid signaling molecules, such as juvenile hormones in insects and epoxy fatty acids in mammals. In this study we fed mosquitoes with an epoxide hydrolase inhibitor AUDA during artificial blood feeding, and we found the inhibitor increased the concentration of epoxy fatty acids in the midgut of female mosquitoes. We also observed ingestion of AUDA triggered early expression of defensin A, cecropin A and cecropin B2 at 6 h after blood feeding. The expression of cecropin B1 and gambicin were not changed more than two fold compared to controls. The changes in gene expression were transient possibly because more than 99% of the inhibitor was metabolized or excreted at 42 h after being ingested. The ingestion of AUDA also affected the growth of bacteria colonizing in the midgut, but did not affect mosquito longevity, fecundity and fertility in our laboratory conditions. When spiked into the blood, EpOMEs and DiHOMEs were as effective as the inhibitor AUDA in reducing the bacterial load in the midgut, while EETs rescued the effects of AUDA. Our data suggest that epoxy fatty acids from host blood are immune response regulators metabolized by epoxide hydrolases in the midgut of female mosquitoes, inhibition of which causes transient changes in immune responses, and affects growth of microbes in the midgut.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiawen Xu
- Department of Entomology and UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California Davis, Davis, CA, USA
| | - Christophe Morisseau
- Department of Entomology and UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California Davis, Davis, CA, USA
| | - Jun Yang
- Department of Entomology and UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California Davis, Davis, CA, USA
| | - Kin Sing Stephen Lee
- Department of Entomology and UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California Davis, Davis, CA, USA
| | - Shizuo G Kamita
- Department of Entomology and UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California Davis, Davis, CA, USA
| | - Bruce D Hammock
- Department of Entomology and UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California Davis, Davis, CA, USA.
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Kajla M, Choudhury TP, Kakani P, Gupta K, Dhawan R, Gupta L, Kumar S. Silencing of Anopheles stephensi Heme Peroxidase HPX15 Activates Diverse Immune Pathways to Regulate the Growth of Midgut Bacteria. Front Microbiol 2016; 7:1351. [PMID: 27630620 PMCID: PMC5006007 DOI: 10.3389/fmicb.2016.01351] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/04/2016] [Accepted: 08/16/2016] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Anopheles mosquito midgut harbors a diverse group of endogenous bacteria that grow extensively after the blood feeding and help in food digestion and nutrition in many ways. Although, the growth of endogenous bacteria is regulated by various factors, however, the robust antibacterial immune reactions are generally suppressed in this body compartment by a heme peroxidase HPX15 crosslinked mucins barrier. This barrier is formed on the luminal side of the midgut and blocks the direct interactions and recognition of bacteria or their elicitors by the immune reactive midgut epithelium. We hypothesized that in the absence of HPX15, an increased load of exogenous bacteria will enormously induce the mosquito midgut immunity and this situation in turn, can easily regulate mosquito-pathogen interactions. In this study, we found that the blood feeding induced AsHPX15 gene in Anopheles stephensi midgut and promoted the growth of endogenous as well as exogenous fed bacteria. In addition, the mosquito midgut also efficiently regulated the number of these bacteria through the induction of classical Toll and Imd immune pathways. In case of AsHPX15 silenced midguts, the growth of midgut bacteria was largely reduced through the induction of nitric oxide synthase (NOS) gene, a downstream effector molecule of the JAK/STAT pathway. Interestingly, no significant induction of the classical immune pathways was observed in these midguts. Importantly, the NOS is a well known negative regulator of Plasmodium development, thus, we proposed that the induction of diverged immune pathways in the absence of HPX15 mediated midgut barrier might be one of the strategies to manipulate the vectorial capacity of Anopheles mosquito.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mithilesh Kajla
- Molecular Parasitology and Vector Biology Laboratory, Department of Biological Sciences, Birla Institute of Technology and Science Pilani, India
| | - Tania P Choudhury
- Molecular Parasitology and Vector Biology Laboratory, Department of Biological Sciences, Birla Institute of Technology and Science Pilani, India
| | - Parik Kakani
- Molecular Parasitology and Vector Biology Laboratory, Department of Biological Sciences, Birla Institute of Technology and Science Pilani, India
| | - Kuldeep Gupta
- Molecular Parasitology and Vector Biology Laboratory, Department of Biological Sciences, Birla Institute of Technology and Science Pilani, India
| | - Rini Dhawan
- Molecular Parasitology and Vector Biology Laboratory, Department of Biological Sciences, Birla Institute of Technology and Science Pilani, India
| | - Lalita Gupta
- Molecular Parasitology and Vector Biology Laboratory, Department of Biological Sciences, Birla Institute of Technology and SciencePilani, India; Department of Zoology, Chaudhary Bansi Lal UniversityBhiwani, India
| | - Sanjeev Kumar
- Molecular Parasitology and Vector Biology Laboratory, Department of Biological Sciences, Birla Institute of Technology and SciencePilani, India; Department of Biotechnology, Chaudhary Bansi Lal UniversityBhiwani, India
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38
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Hillyer JF. Insect immunology and hematopoiesis. DEVELOPMENTAL AND COMPARATIVE IMMUNOLOGY 2016; 58:102-18. [PMID: 26695127 PMCID: PMC4775421 DOI: 10.1016/j.dci.2015.12.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 294] [Impact Index Per Article: 36.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/06/2015] [Revised: 12/08/2015] [Accepted: 12/10/2015] [Indexed: 05/08/2023]
Abstract
Insects combat infection by mounting powerful immune responses that are mediated by hemocytes, the fat body, the midgut, the salivary glands and other tissues. Foreign organisms that have entered the body of an insect are recognized by the immune system when pathogen-associated molecular patterns bind host-derived pattern recognition receptors. This, in turn, activates immune signaling pathways that amplify the immune response, induce the production of factors with antimicrobial activity, and activate effector pathways. Among the immune signaling pathways are the Toll, Imd, Jak/Stat, JNK, and insulin pathways. Activation of these and other pathways leads to pathogen killing via phagocytosis, melanization, cellular encapsulation, nodulation, lysis, RNAi-mediated virus destruction, autophagy and apoptosis. This review details these and other aspects of immunity in insects, and discusses how the immune and circulatory systems have co-adapted to combat infection, how hemocyte replication and differentiation takes place (hematopoiesis), how an infection prepares an insect for a subsequent infection (immune priming), how environmental factors such as temperature and the age of the insect impact the immune response, and how social immunity protects entire groups. Finally, this review highlights some underexplored areas in the field of insect immunobiology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julián F Hillyer
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, VU Station B 35-1634, Nashville, TN 37235, USA.
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Zhang N, Deng J, Wu F, Lu X, Huang L, Zhao M. Expression of arginase I and inducible nitric oxide synthase in the peripheral blood and lymph nodes of HIV‑positive patients. Mol Med Rep 2015; 13:731-43. [PMID: 26647762 PMCID: PMC4686052 DOI: 10.3892/mmr.2015.4601] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2015] [Accepted: 10/21/2015] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Arginase I (Arg I) and inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) are important in regulating immune functions through their metabolites. Previous studies have revealed that the expression of Arg I is increased and the expression of iNOS is reduced in the serum and peripheral blood mononuclear cells of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)-infected patients. As one of the most important immune organs and HIV replication sites, whether similar changes are present in the lymph nodes following HIV infection remains to be elucidated. To investigate this, the present study collected lymph node and blood specimens from 52 HIV-infected patients to measure the expression levels of Arg I and iNOS by immunohistochemistry and fluoresence-based flow cytometry. Compared with control subjects without HIV infection, the patients with HIV had significantly higher expression levels of Arg I in the lymph nodes and higher frequencies of Arg I+ CD4+ T cells and CD8+ T cells in the blood and lymph nodes, and these results were contrary the those of iNOS in the corresponding compartments. The expression levels of Arg I in the lymph nodes and blood were negatively associated with peripheral CD4+ T cell count and positively associated with viral load. However, the expression levels of iNOS in the lymph nodes and blood were positively associated with peripheral CD4+ T cell count and negatively associated with viral load. These results showed that alterations in the expression levels of Arg I and iNOS in the peripheral T cells and peripheral nodes of HIV infected patients are associated with disease progression in these patients. These results indicate a potential to therapeutic strategy for delaying disease progression through regulating and manipulating the expression levels of Arg I and iNOS in patients infected with HIV.
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Affiliation(s)
- Naichun Zhang
- Treatment and Research Center for Infectious Diseases, The 302 Hospital of PLA, Beijing 100039, P.R. China
| | - Jianning Deng
- AIDS Department, The 4th People's Hospital of Nanning/Guangxi AIDS Clinical Treatment Center, Nanning, Guangxi 530023, P.R. China
| | - Fengyao Wu
- AIDS Department, The 4th People's Hospital of Nanning/Guangxi AIDS Clinical Treatment Center, Nanning, Guangxi 530023, P.R. China
| | - Xiangchan Lu
- AIDS Department, The 4th People's Hospital of Nanning/Guangxi AIDS Clinical Treatment Center, Nanning, Guangxi 530023, P.R. China
| | - Lei Huang
- Treatment and Research Center for Infectious Diseases, The 302 Hospital of PLA, Beijing 100039, P.R. China
| | - Min Zhao
- Treatment and Research Center for Infectious Diseases, The 302 Hospital of PLA, Beijing 100039, P.R. China
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40
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Substrate specificity and transport mechanism of amino-acid transceptor Slimfast from Aedes aegypti. Nat Commun 2015; 6:8546. [PMID: 26449545 PMCID: PMC4608377 DOI: 10.1038/ncomms9546] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/26/2015] [Accepted: 09/03/2015] [Indexed: 12/11/2022] Open
Abstract
Anautogenous mosquitoes depend on vertebrate blood as nutrient source for their eggs. A highly efficient set of membrane transporters mediates the massive movement of nutrient amino acids between mosquito tissues after a blood meal. Here we report the characterization of the amino-acid transporter Slimfast (Slif) from the yellow-fever mosquito Aedes aegypti using codon-optimized heterologous expression. Slif is a well-known component of the target-of-rapamycin signalling pathway and fat body nutrient sensor, but its substrate specificity and transport mechanism were unknown. We found that Slif transports essential cationic and neutral amino acids with preference for arginine. It has an unusual dual-affinity mechanism with only the high affinity being Na+ dependent. Tissue-specific expression and blood meal-dependent regulation of Slif are consistent with conveyance of essential amino acids from gut to fat body. Slif represents a novel transport system and type of transceptor for sensing and transporting essential amino acids during mosquito reproduction. Anautogenous mosquitoes need to obtain essential amino acids from a blood meal for reproduction. Here, the authors examine the amino acid transporter Slimfast from the yellow-fever mosquito and describe both its specificity and mechanism of action.
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41
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Bacterial Exposure at the Larval Stage Induced Sexual Immune Dimorphism and Priming in Adult Aedes aegypti Mosquitoes. PLoS One 2015; 10:e0133240. [PMID: 26181517 PMCID: PMC4504673 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0133240] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2014] [Accepted: 06/25/2015] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Gender differences in the immune response of insects are driven by natural selection for females and sexual selection for males. These natural forces entail a multitude of extrinsic and intrinsic factors involved in a genotype-environment interaction that results in sex-biased expression of the genes shared by males and females. However, little is known about how an infection at a particular ontogenetic stage may influence later stages, or how it may impact sexual immune dimorphism. Using Aedes aegypti mosquitoes, the aim of the present study was to analyze the effect of a bacterial exposure at the larval stage on adult immunity in males and females. The parameters measured were phenoloxidase activity, nitric oxide production, antimicrobial activity, and the antimicrobial peptide transcript response. As a measure of the immune response success, the persistence of injected bacteria was also evaluated. The results show that males, as well as females, were able to enhance survival in the adult stage as a result of being exposed at the larval stage, which indicates a priming effect. Moreover, there was a differential gender immune response, evidenced by higher PO activity in males as well as higher NO production and greater antimicrobial activity in females. The greater bacterial persistence in females suggests a gender-specific strategy for protection after a previous experience with an elicitor. Hence, this study provides a primary characterization of the complex and gender-specific immune response of male and female adults against a bacterial challenge in mosquitoes primed at an early ontogenetic stage.
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Giglio A, Brandmayr P, Pasqua T, Angelone T, Battistella S, Giulianini PG. Immune challenges trigger cellular and humoral responses in adults of Pterostichus melas italicus (Coleoptera, Carabidae). ARTHROPOD STRUCTURE & DEVELOPMENT 2015; 44:209-217. [PMID: 25656553 DOI: 10.1016/j.asd.2015.01.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/17/2014] [Revised: 01/20/2015] [Accepted: 01/23/2015] [Indexed: 06/04/2023]
Abstract
The present study focuses on the ability of Pterostichus melas italicus Dejean to mount cellular and humoral immune responses against invading pathogens. Ultrastructural analyses revealed the presence of five morphologically distinct types of hemocytes: prohemocytes, plasmatocytes, granulocytes, oenocytoids and macrophage-like cells. Differential hemocyte counts showed that plasmatocytes and granulocytes were the most abundant circulating cell types and plasmatocytes exhibited phagocytic activity following the latex bead immune challenge. Macrophage-like cells were recruited after the immune challenge to remove exhausted phagocytizing cells, apoptotic cells and melanotic capsules formed to immobilize the latex beads. Total hemocyte counts showed a significant reduction of hemocytes after latex bead treatment. Phenoloxidase (PO) assays revealed an increase of total PO in hemolymph after immune system activation with lipopolysaccharide (LPS). Moreover, the LPS-stimulated hemocytes showed increased protein expression of inducible nitric oxide synthase, indicating that the cytotoxic action of nitric oxide was engaged in this antimicrobial collaborative response. These results provide a knowledge base for further studies on the sensitivity of the P. melas italicus immune system to the environmental perturbation in order to evaluate the effect of chemicals on non-target species in agroecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anita Giglio
- Dipartimento di Biologia, Ecologia e Scienze della Terra, Università della Calabria, Via P. Bucci, I-87036 Rende, Italy.
| | - Pietro Brandmayr
- Dipartimento di Biologia, Ecologia e Scienze della Terra, Università della Calabria, Via P. Bucci, I-87036 Rende, Italy
| | - Teresa Pasqua
- Dipartimento di Biologia, Ecologia e Scienze della Terra, Università della Calabria, Via P. Bucci, I-87036 Rende, Italy
| | - Tommaso Angelone
- Dipartimento di Biologia, Ecologia e Scienze della Terra, Università della Calabria, Via P. Bucci, I-87036 Rende, Italy
| | - Silvia Battistella
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita, Università di Trieste, Via Giorgieri 5, I-34127 Trieste, Italy
| | - Piero G Giulianini
- Dipartimento di Scienze della Vita, Università di Trieste, Via Giorgieri 5, I-34127 Trieste, Italy
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43
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Sun D, Li C, Gao J, Li S, Wang H. Effects of selenium deficiency on principal indexes of chicken kidney function. Biol Trace Elem Res 2015; 164:58-63. [PMID: 25476001 DOI: 10.1007/s12011-014-0196-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2014] [Accepted: 11/25/2014] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Selenium (Se) deficiency leads to many pathological changes in animals. However, there have been very few reports regarding chicken tissue injury in the kidney caused by Se deficiency. In this study, a chicken Se-deficient disease model has been constructed, and two renal function indexes [including creatinine (CREA) and uric acid (URIC)], seven renal antioxidative function indexes [including glutathione peroxidase (GPx), anti-hydroxyl radical (AHR), catalase (CAT), hydrogen peroxide (H2O2), nitrogen monoxide (NO), glutathione (GSH), and malonyldialdehyde (MDA)], and two organ/tissue injury-related indexes [including inducible nitric oxide synthase (iNOS) and inducible heme oxygenase (HO)-1] were detected and analyzed to investigate the effects of Se deficiency on chicken kidney tissue. The results showed that Se deficiency caused a significant increase in CREA and URIC levels and a decrease in renal antioxidative capacity. Meanwhile, Se deficiency upregulated the expression of organ/tissue injury-related genes, such as the messenger RNA (mRNA) of HO-1 and iNOS as well as their protein expression levels, in the chicken kidney tissue. These data suggest that Se deficiency in birds triggers renal function regression and oxidative stress in the kidney tissue.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dongbo Sun
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Northeast Agricultural University, No. 59 Mucai Street, Xiangfang District, 150030, Harbin, People's Republic of China
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Chen X, Yao H, Yao L, Zhao J, Luan Y, Zhang Z, Xu S. Selenium deficiency influences the gene expressions of heat shock proteins and nitric oxide levels in neutrophils of broilers. Biol Trace Elem Res 2014; 161:334-40. [PMID: 25315471 DOI: 10.1007/s12011-014-0150-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 19] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/15/2014] [Accepted: 09/28/2014] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
The aim of the present study was to investigate the effects of selenium (Se) deficiency on the expressions of heat shock proteins (Hsp90, 70, 60, 40, and 27) and nitric oxide (NO) levels in neutrophils of broilers. One hundred eighty 1-day-old broilers were randomly assigned into two groups and were fed on a low-Se diet (0.008 mg/kg Se) or a control diet (0.2 mg/kg Se), respectively. Then, the messenger RNA (mRNA) levels of Hsp90, 70, 60, 40, and 27, induced nitric oxide synthase (iNOS), and NO levels were examined. The results showed that Se deficiency increased the mRNA levels of Hsps and iNOS and induced higher level of NO in chicken neutrophils (P < 0.05). It showed that the expression of Hsp40 increased higher than other Hsps in neutrophils, which indicated that it might play the crucial protective role in neutrophils. In addition, correlation analysis showed that iNOS had the biggest correlation with Hsp60, which indicated that Hsp60 might play an important function in inhibiting the production of NO, and the correlation coefficient between Hsp60 and Hsp70 was over 0.9, which indicated that they might have a synergistic effect. These results suggested that the level of NO and Hsp expression levels in neutrophils can be influenced by Se deficiency. And Hsp40 might play the crucial protective role in neutrophils induced by Se deficiency.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xi Chen
- College of Veterinary Medicine, Northeast Agricultural University, Harbin, 150030, People's Republic of China
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45
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Xu J, Morisseau C, Hammock BD. Expression and characterization of an epoxide hydrolase from Anopheles gambiae with high activity on epoxy fatty acids. INSECT BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2014; 54:42-52. [PMID: 25173592 PMCID: PMC4252830 DOI: 10.1016/j.ibmb.2014.08.004] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2014] [Revised: 08/08/2014] [Accepted: 08/15/2014] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
In insects, epoxide hydrolases (EHs) play critical roles in the metabolism of xenobiotic epoxides from the food resources and in the regulation of endogenous chemical mediators, such as juvenile hormones. Using the baculovirus expression system, we expressed and characterized an epoxide hydrolase from Anopheles gambiae (AgEH) that is distinct in evolutionary history from insect juvenile hormone epoxide hydrolases (JHEHs). We partially purified the enzyme by ion exchange chromatography and isoelectric focusing. The experimentally determined molecular weight and pI were estimated to be 35 kD and 6.3 respectively, different than the theoretical ones. The AgEH had the greatest activity on long chain epoxy fatty acids such as 14,15-epoxyeicosatrienoic acids (14,15-EET) and 9,10-epoxy-12Z-octadecenoic acids (9,10-EpOME or leukotoxin) among the substrates evaluated. Juvenile hormone III, a terpenoid insect growth regulator, was the next best substrate tested. The AgEH showed kinetics comparable to the mammalian soluble epoxide hydrolases, and the activity could be inhibited by AUDA [12-(3-adamantan-1-yl-ureido) dodecanoic acid], a urea-based inhibitor designed to inhibit the mammalian soluble epoxide hydrolases. The rabbit serum generated against the soluble epoxide hydrolase of Mus musculus can both cross-react with natural and denatured forms of the AgEH, suggesting immunologically they are similar. The study suggests there are mammalian sEH homologs in insects, and epoxy fatty acids may be important chemical mediators in insects.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiawen Xu
- Department of Entomology and Nematology, UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA 95616, USA
| | - Christophe Morisseau
- Department of Entomology and Nematology, UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA 95616, USA
| | - Bruce D Hammock
- Department of Entomology and Nematology, UC Davis Comprehensive Cancer Center, University of California, One Shields Avenue, Davis, CA 95616, USA.
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46
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Hillyer JF, Strand MR. Mosquito hemocyte-mediated immune responses. CURRENT OPINION IN INSECT SCIENCE 2014; 3:14-21. [PMID: 25309850 PMCID: PMC4190037 DOI: 10.1016/j.cois.2014.07.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 118] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
Hemocytes are a key component of the mosquito immune system that kill pathogens via phagocytic, lytic and melanization pathways. Individual mosquitoes contain between 500 and 4,000 hemocytes, which are divided into three populations named granulocytes, oenocytoids and prohemocytes. Hemocytes can also be divided by their anatomical location with 75% of hemocytes circulating in the hemocoel (circulating hemocytes) and 25% of hemocytes attaching themselves to tissues (sessile hemocytes). Greater than 85% of the hemocytes in adult mosquitoes are granulocytes, which primarily kill pathogens by phagocytosis or lysis. Oenocytoids, on the other hand, are the major producers of the enzymes required for melanization while prohemocytes are small cells that participate in phagocytosis. Both circulating and sessile hemocytes engage in defense against pathogens. The circulatory system of mosquitoes also interacts with hemocytes and facilitates elimination of potential pathogens that enter the hemocoel.
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Affiliation(s)
- Julián F. Hillyer
- Department of Biological Sciences and Institute for Global Health, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN, USA
| | - Michael R. Strand
- Department of Entomology and Center for Tropical and Emerging Global Diseases, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, USA
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Raphemot R, Estévez-Lao TY, Rouhier MF, Piermarini PM, Denton JS, Hillyer JF. Molecular and functional characterization of Anopheles gambiae inward rectifier potassium (Kir1) channels: a novel role in egg production. INSECT BIOCHEMISTRY AND MOLECULAR BIOLOGY 2014; 51:10-9. [PMID: 24855023 PMCID: PMC4121989 DOI: 10.1016/j.ibmb.2014.05.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/14/2014] [Revised: 05/03/2014] [Accepted: 05/10/2014] [Indexed: 05/21/2023]
Abstract
Inward rectifier potassium (Kir) channels play essential roles in regulating diverse physiological processes. Although Kir channels are encoded in mosquito genomes, their functions remain largely unknown. In this study, we identified the members of the Anopheles gambiae Kir gene family and began to investigate their function. Notably, we sequenced the A. gambiae Kir1 (AgKir1) gene and showed that it encodes all the canonical features of a Kir channel: an ion pore that is composed of a pore helix and a selectivity filter, two transmembrane domains that flank the ion pore, and the so-called G-loop. Heterologous expression of AgKir1 in Xenopus oocytes revealed that this gene encodes a functional, barium-sensitive Kir channel. Quantitative RT-PCR experiments then showed that relative AgKir1 mRNA levels are highest in the pupal stage, and that AgKir1 mRNA is enriched in the adult ovaries. Gene silencing of AgKir1 by RNA interference did not affect the survival of female mosquitoes following a blood meal, but decreased their egg output. These data provide evidence for a new role of Kir channels in mosquito fecundity, and further validates them as promising molecular targets for the development of a new class of mosquitocides to be used in vector control.
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Affiliation(s)
- Rene Raphemot
- Department of Anesthesiology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37232, USA; Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37232, USA
| | - Tania Y Estévez-Lao
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37232, USA
| | - Matthew F Rouhier
- Department of Entomology, Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center, The Ohio State University, Wooster, OH 44691, USA
| | - Peter M Piermarini
- Department of Entomology, Ohio Agricultural Research and Development Center, The Ohio State University, Wooster, OH 44691, USA
| | - Jerod S Denton
- Department of Anesthesiology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37232, USA; Department of Pharmacology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37232, USA; Institute of Chemical Biology, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37232, USA; Institute for Global Health, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37232, USA.
| | - Julián F Hillyer
- Department of Biological Sciences, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37232, USA; Institute for Global Health, Vanderbilt University, Nashville, TN 37232, USA.
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48
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Murdock CC, Blanford S, Luckhart S, Thomas MB. Ambient temperature and dietary supplementation interact to shape mosquito vector competence for malaria. JOURNAL OF INSECT PHYSIOLOGY 2014; 67:37-44. [PMID: 24911425 PMCID: PMC4107084 DOI: 10.1016/j.jinsphys.2014.05.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2014] [Revised: 05/22/2014] [Accepted: 05/24/2014] [Indexed: 05/23/2023]
Abstract
The extent to which environmental factors influence the ability of Anopheles mosquitoes to transmit malaria parasites remains poorly explored. Environmental variation, such as change in ambient temperature, will not necessarily influence the rates of host and parasite processes equivalently, potentially resulting in complex effects on infection outcomes. As proof of principle, we used Anopheles stephensi and the rodent malaria parasite, Plasmodium yoelii, to examine the effects of a range of constant temperatures on one aspect of host defense (detected as alterations in expression of nitric oxide synthase gene - NOS) to parasite infection. We experimentally boosted mosquito midgut immunity to infection through dietary supplementation with the essential amino acid l-Arginine (l-Arg), which increases midgut nitric oxide (NO) levels by infection-induced NOS catalysis in A. stephensi. At intermediate temperatures, supplementation reduced oocyst prevalence, oocyst intensity, and sporozoite prevalence suggesting that the outcome of parasite infection was potentially dependent upon the rate of NOS-mediated midgut immunity. At low and high temperature extremes, however, infection was severely constrained irrespective of supplementation. The effects of l-Arg appeared to be mediated by NO-dependent negative feedback on NOS expression, as evidenced by depressed NOS expression in l-Arg treated groups at temperatures where supplementation decreased parasite infection. These results suggest the need to consider the direct (e.g. effects of mosquito body temperature on parasite physiology) and indirect effects (e.g. mediated through changes in mosquito physiology/immunity) of environmental factors on mosquito-malaria interactions in order to understand natural variation in vector competence.
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Affiliation(s)
- Courtney C Murdock
- Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics, Department of Entomology, Pennsylvania State University, Merkle Lab, Orchard Road, University Park, PA 16802, United States.
| | - Simon Blanford
- Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics, Department of Entomology, Pennsylvania State University, Merkle Lab, Orchard Road, University Park, PA 16802, United States.
| | - Shirley Luckhart
- Department of Medical Microbiology and Immunology, School of Medicine, University of California Davis, Davis, CA 95616, United States.
| | - Matthew B Thomas
- Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics, Department of Entomology, Pennsylvania State University, Merkle Lab, Orchard Road, University Park, PA 16802, United States.
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Kukutla P, Lindberg BG, Pei D, Rayl M, Yu W, Steritz M, Faye I, Xu J. Insights from the genome annotation of Elizabethkingia anophelis from the malaria vector Anopheles gambiae. PLoS One 2014; 9:e97715. [PMID: 24842809 PMCID: PMC4026382 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0097715] [Citation(s) in RCA: 40] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2014] [Accepted: 04/23/2014] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Elizabethkingia anophelis is a dominant bacterial species in the gut ecosystem of the malaria vector mosquito Anopheles gambiae. We recently sequenced the genomes of two strains of E. anophelis, R26T and Ag1, isolated from different strains of A. gambiae. The two bacterial strains are identical with a few exceptions. Phylogenetically, Elizabethkingia is closer to Chryseobacterium and Riemerella than to Flavobacterium. In line with other Bacteroidetes known to utilize various polymers in their ecological niches, the E. anophelis genome contains numerous TonB dependent transporters with various substrate specificities. In addition, several genes belonging to the polysaccharide utilization system and the glycoside hydrolase family were identified that could potentially be of benefit for the mosquito carbohydrate metabolism. In agreement with previous reports of broad antibiotic resistance in E. anophelis, a large number of genes encoding efflux pumps and β-lactamases are present in the genome. The component genes of resistance-nodulation-division type efflux pumps were found to be syntenic and conserved in different taxa of Bacteroidetes. The bacterium also displays hemolytic activity and encodes several hemolysins that may participate in the digestion of erythrocytes in the mosquito gut. At the same time, the OxyR regulon and antioxidant genes could provide defense against the oxidative stress that is associated with blood digestion. The genome annotation and comparative genomic analysis revealed functional characteristics associated with the symbiotic relationship with the mosquito host.
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Affiliation(s)
- Phanidhar Kukutla
- Biology Department, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, New Mexico, United States of America
| | - Bo G. Lindberg
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, The Wenner-Gren Institute, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Dong Pei
- Biology Department, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, New Mexico, United States of America
| | - Melanie Rayl
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, The Wenner-Gren Institute, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
| | - Wanqin Yu
- Biology Department, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, New Mexico, United States of America
| | - Matthew Steritz
- Biology Department, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, New Mexico, United States of America
| | - Ingrid Faye
- Department of Molecular Biosciences, The Wenner-Gren Institute, Stockholm University, Stockholm, Sweden
- * E-mail: (JX); (IF)
| | - Jiannong Xu
- Biology Department, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, New Mexico, United States of America
- * E-mail: (JX); (IF)
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50
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Tseng MN, Chung CL, Tzean SS. Mechanisms relevant to the enhanced virulence of a dihydroxynaphthalene-melanin metabolically engineered entomopathogen. PLoS One 2014; 9:e90473. [PMID: 24662974 PMCID: PMC3963850 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0090473] [Citation(s) in RCA: 15] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/16/2013] [Accepted: 02/04/2014] [Indexed: 12/25/2022] Open
Abstract
The entomopathogenic fungus Metarhizium anisopliae MA05-169 is a transformant strain that has been metabolically engineered to express dihydroxynaphthalene-melanin biosynthesis genes. In contrast to the wild type strain, the transformant displays a greater resistance to environmental stress and a higher virulence toward target insect host. However, the underlying mechanisms for these characteristics remain unclear; hence experiments were initiated to explore the possible mechanism(s) through physiological and molecular approaches. Although both transformant and wild type strains could infect and share the same insect host range, the former germinated faster and produced more appressoria than the latter, both in vivo and in vitro. The transformant showed a significantly shorter median lethal time (LT50) when infecting the diamondback moth (Plutella xylostella) and the striped flea beetle (Phyllotreta striolata), than the wild type. Additionally, the transformant was more tolerant to reactive oxygen species (ROS), produced 40-fold more orthosporin and notably overexpressed the transcripts of the pathogenicity-relevant hydrolytic enzymes (chitinase, protease, and phospholipase) genes in vivo. In contrast, appressorium turgor pressure and destruxin A content were slightly decreased compared to the wild type. The transformant's high anti-stress tolerance, its high virulence against five important insect pests (cowpea aphid Aphis craccivora, diamondback moth Pl. xylostella, striped flea beetle Ph. striolata, and silverleaf whitefly Bemisia argentifolii) and its capacity to colonize the root system are key properties for its potential bio-control field application.
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Affiliation(s)
- Min-Nan Tseng
- Department of Plant Pathology and Microbiology, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
- Division of Plant Protection, Kaohsiung District Agricultural Research and Extension Station, Council of Agriculture, Executive Yuan, Pingtung, Taiwan
| | - Chia-Ling Chung
- Department of Plant Pathology and Microbiology, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
| | - Shean-Shong Tzean
- Department of Plant Pathology and Microbiology, National Taiwan University, Taipei, Taiwan
- * E-mail:
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