Switching between humoral and cellular immune responses in Drosophila is guided by the cytokine GBP.

ABSTRACT: Insects combat infection through carefully measured cellular (for example, phagocytosis) and humoral (for example, secretion of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs)) innate immune responses. Little is known concerning how these different defense mechanisms are coordinated. Here, we use insect plasmatocytes and hemocyte-like Drosophila S2 cells to characterize mechanisms of immunity that operate in the haemocoel. We demonstrate that a Drosophila cytokine, growth-blocking peptides (GBP), acts through the phospholipase C (PLC)/Ca(2+) signalling cascade to mediate the secretion of Pvf, a ligand for platelet-derived growth factor- and vascular endothelial growth factor-receptor (Pvr) homologue. Activated Pvr recruits extracellular signal-regulated protein kinase to inhibit humoral immune responses, wh

SUBMITTER: Tsuzuki S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5755975 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Aug

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature