The Galleria mellonella-Enteropathogenic Escherichia coli Model System: Characterization of Pathogen Virulence and Insect Immune Responses.

ABSTRACT: The use of Galleria mellonella (Linnaeus) (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae), an economical insect model, for the study of enteropathogenic Escherichia coli (Migula) (EPEC), a diarrheagenic human pathogen, has been demonstrated previously but remains poorly understood. The present study characterizes the Galleria-EPEC system extensively for future studies using this system. We found that EPEC causes disease in G. mellonella larvae when injected intrahemocoelically but not orally. Disease manifests as increased mortality, decreased survival time, delayed pupation, decreased pupal mass, increased pupal duration, and hemocytopenia. Disease symptoms are dose-dependent and can be used as metrics for measuring EPEC virulence in future studies. The type III secretion system was only partially responsible f

SUBMITTER: Chen RY 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8315237 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature