Complement-related proteins control the flavivirus infection of Aedes aegypti by inducing antimicrobial peptides.

ABSTRACT: The complement system functions during the early phase of infection and directly mediates pathogen elimination. The recent identification of complement-like factors in arthropods indicates that this system shares common ancestry in vertebrates and invertebrates as an immune defense mechanism. Thioester (TE)-containing proteins (TEPs), which show high similarity to mammalian complement C3, are thought to play a key role in innate immunity in arthropods. Herein, we report that a viral recognition cascade composed of two complement-related proteins limits the flaviviral infection of Aedes aegypti. An A. aegypti macroglobulin complement-related factor (AaMCR), belonging to the insect TEP family, is a crucial effector in opposing the flaviviral infection of A. aegypti. However, AaMCR does not d

SUBMITTER: Xiao X 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3983052 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature