engleski

Specificity of microbiota-mediated immune priming in insects

Recent evidence indicates that invertebrates are capable of an unexpected degree of immune memory, i.e. the immune priming. However, the underpinnings of this phenomenon are still largely unknown and the mechanisms may differ from case to case. As microbiota has been suggested to shape immunological responses of various hosts, the main aim of this study was to elucidate the mechanisms behind the already observed phenomenon of oral priming. Our hypothesis was that the eradication of commensal bacteria from insect larvae might lead to loss of the priming effect. As a model we used a well-established host-parasite system, the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum and its natural entomopathogen, Bacillus thuringiensis. Our results confirmed our hypothesis and undoubtedly proved the essential role gut microbes play in the oral immune priming in T. castaneum, although the molecular and mechanistic underpinnings behind this phenomenon need further research. Furthermore, we showed that the oral priming in our host-pathogen model comes with a certain level of specificity. Our results represent a significant contribution to the growing body of knowledge on the topic of insect immunity and immune memory through the aspect of insect microbiota.

specificity ; microbiota ; immune priming

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