The innate immune system is the first mechanism of vertebrate defense against pathogen infection. In this study, we present evidence for a novel immune evasion mechanism of Trypanosoma cruzi, mediated by host cell plasma membrane-derived vesicles. We found that T. cruzi metacyclic trypomastigotes induced microvesicle release from blood cells early in infection. Upon their release, microvesicles...

Book details Stock SP, Vandenburg J, Glazer I, Boemare N: Insect Pathogens Molecular Approaches and Techniques CAB International; 2009:417. ISBN 13: 978 1 84593 478 1 Review Insects are not only of immense economic and medical importance, they provide important models for the advancement of knowledge and many are of ascetic value. They are also beset by an array of pathogens, despite their well...

Many insect-transmissible pathogens are transmitted by specific insect species and not by others, even if they are closely related. The molecular mechanisms underlying such strict pathogen-insect specificity are poorly understood. Candidatus Phytoplasma asteris, OY strain, line W (OY), is a phytopathogenic bacterium transmitted from plant to plant by sap-feeding insect vectors (leafhoppers). Ou...

Injury and infection priming has been observed in several insect groups, reported as host immune protection against contact with a pathogen caused by a previous infection with the same. However, the specific response against a pathogen has not been demonstrated in all insect species. Investigating the specific priming response in insects is important because their immune strategies probably ref...

"Candidatus Liberibacter solanacearum" (Lso) is an economically important pathogen of solanaceous crops and the putative causal agent of zebra chip disease of potato (Solanum tuberosum L.). This pathogen is transmitted to solanaceous species by the potato psyllid, Bactericera cockerelli (Šulc), but many aspects of the acquisition and transmission processes have yet to be elucidated. The present...

The mechanisms and conditions affecting expression of systemic induced resistance (SIR) in pine are not clearly understood. Two hypotheses were tested here: that SIR against a pathogen induced by either a pathogen or an insect involves coordinated shifts in phloem secondary metabolism; and that fertility affects the production of these compounds. To test these hypotheses, a tripartite system wa...

Plant pathogens can influence the behavior and performance of insect herbivores. Studies of these associations typically focus on tripartite interactions between a plant host, a plant pathogen, and its insect vector. An unrelated herbivore or pathogen might influence such interactions. This study used a model system consisting of Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV), the psyllid Bactericera cockerelli Su...

Previous studies in lower termites revealed unexpected synergies between nicotinoid insecticides and fungal entomopathogens. The present study investigated molecular mechanisms of nicotinoid-pathogen synergy in the lower termite Reticulitermes flavipes, using the nicotinoid, imidacloprid, in combination with fungal and bacterial entomopathogens. Particular focus was placed on metatranscriptome ...

The trade-off hypothesis proposes that the evolution of pathogens' virulence is shaped by a link between virulence and contagiousness. This link is often assumed to come from the fact that pathogens are contagious only if they can reach high parasitic load in the infected host. In this paper we present an experimental test of the hypothesis that selection on fast replication can affect virulenc...