Parasitic Nematodes Exert Antimicrobial Activity and Benefit From Microbiota-Driven Support for Host Immune Regulation.

ABSTRACT: Intestinal parasitic nematodes live in intimate contact with the host microbiota. Changes in the microbiome composition during nematode infection affect immune control of the parasites and shifts in the abundance of bacterial groups have been linked to the immunoregulatory potential of nematodes. Here we asked if the small intestinal parasite Heligmosomoides polygyrus produces factors with antimicrobial activity, senses its microbial environment and if the anti-nematode immune and regulatory responses are altered in mice devoid of gut microbes. We found that H. polygyrus excretory/secretory products exhibited antimicrobial activity against gram^+/- bacteria. Parasites from germ-free mice displayed alterations in gene expression, comprising factors with putative anti

SUBMITTER: Rausch S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6186814 | biostudies-literature | 2018

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature