Diet Driven Differences in Host Tolerance Are Linked to Shifts in Global Gene Expression in a Common Avian Host-Pathogen System.

ABSTRACT: Wildlife have become increasingly dependent on anthropogenic resources, altering interactions between individuals and subsequently disease transmission. Further, nutritional quantity and quality impact an individual's ability to mitigate damage caused by infectious disease. Thus, understanding how diet affects immune function is critical for predicting disease severity and transmission. Here, we use transcriptomics to explore the previously unstudied molecular mechanisms underpinning diet-driven differences in pathogen tolerance. Using a widespread avian bacterial pathogen, we find significant diet-driven differences in the expression of many genes encoding immune response and translational machinery proteins. Prior to infection, protein-fed birds are more transcriptionally primed for infe

SUBMITTER: Sauer EL 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12143370 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature