Serine Protease Networks Mediate Immune Responses in Extra-Embryonic Tissues of Eggs in the Tobacco Hornworm, Manduca sexta.

ABSTRACT: The melanization and Toll pathways, regulated by a network of serine proteases and noncatalytic serine protease homologs (SPHs), have been investigated mostly in adult and larval insects. However, how these innate immune reactions are regulated in insect eggs remains unclear. Here we present evidence from transcriptome and proteome analyses that extra-embryonic tissues (yolk and serosa) of early-stage Manduca sexta eggs are immune competent, with expression of immune effector genes including prophenoloxidase and antimicrobial peptides. We identified gene products of the melanization and Toll pathways in M. sexta eggs. Through in vitro reconstitution experiments, we demonstrated that constitutive and infection-induced serine protease cascade modules that stimulate immune responses exist in

SUBMITTER: Shan T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC10643904 | biostudies-literature | 2022 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature