engleski

Specificity of oral priming in Tribolium castaneum

Bacillus thuringiensis is a spore-forming entomopathogenic bacterium widely used as a bioinsecticide against grain and leaf- feeding dipterans, lepidopterans and coleopterans. The mechanism of microbe-induced insect mortality is based on the production of Cry toxins, crystalline proteins characterised by a high level of entomocidal specificity. Immune priming, an enhanced immune response following a prior exposure to a certain pathogen, today is recognized as a form of immune memory in invertebrates. In the red flour beetle, Tribolium castaneum, immune priming can be triggered by means of septic wounding and oral ingestion of bacteria derived components. While the priming via septic wounding shows a high level of specificity, it is unclear whether the same pathogen is present in oral priming. In our study, we tested the ability of the red flour beetle to mount an immune priming response to three different Bacillus thuringiensis strains known for their entomocidal activity against this insect. We show that immune protection can be triggered by oral uptake of bacteria-derived components in two of the three bacterial strains used here. Additionally, using a full-factorial experimental design, we show a certain level of specificity in the immune resistance towards the two bacterial strains. Our results contribute to the growing body of knowledge on invertebrate immune priming and they are especially important in an evolutionary context.

microbiota, oral immune priming, Tribolium castaneum

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