Interaction between Insects, Toxins, and Bacteria: Have We Been Wrong So Far?
Toxins (Basel) 2018;
10:toxins10070281. [PMID:
29986377 PMCID:
PMC6070883 DOI:
10.3390/toxins10070281]
[Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/08/2018] [Revised: 07/01/2018] [Accepted: 07/02/2018] [Indexed: 12/19/2022] Open
Abstract
Toxins are a major virulence factor produced by many pathogenic bacteria. In vertebrates, the response of hosts to the bacteria is inseparable from the response to the toxins, allowing a comprehensive understanding of this tripartite host-pathogen-toxin interaction. However, in invertebrates, this interaction has been investigated by two complementary but historically distinct fields of research: toxinology and immunology. In this article, I highlight how such dichotomy between these two fields led to a biased, or even erroneous view of the ecology and evolution of the interaction between insects, toxins, and bacteria. I focus on the reason behind such a dichotomy, on how to bridge the fields together, and on confounding effects that could bias the outcome of the experiments. Finally, I raise four questions at the border of the two fields on the cross-effects between toxins, bacteria, and spores that have been largely underexplored to promote a more comprehensive view of this interaction.
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