Effect of Juvenile Hormone on Resistance against Entomopathogenic Fungus <i>Metarhizium robertsii</i> Differs between Sexes
Juvenile hormone has been suggested to be a potential mediator in the trade-off between mating and insects’ immunity. Studies on various insect taxons have found that juvenile hormone interferes with humoral and cellular immunity. Although this was shown experimentally, studies using highly virulent...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2020-11-01
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| Series: | Journal of Fungi |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2309-608X/6/4/298 |
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| author | Markus J. Rantala Ivan M. Dubovskiy Mari Pölkki Tatjana Krama Jorge Contreras-Garduño Indrikis A. Krams |
| author_facet | Markus J. Rantala Ivan M. Dubovskiy Mari Pölkki Tatjana Krama Jorge Contreras-Garduño Indrikis A. Krams |
| author_sort | Markus J. Rantala |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Juvenile hormone has been suggested to be a potential mediator in the trade-off between mating and insects’ immunity. Studies on various insect taxons have found that juvenile hormone interferes with humoral and cellular immunity. Although this was shown experimentally, studies using highly virulent parasites or pathogens are lacking so far. In this study, we tested if juvenile hormone administration affected resistance against entomopathogenic fungi, <i>Metarhizium robertsii</i>, in the mealworm beetle, <i>Tenebrio molitor</i>. In previous studies with <i>T. molitor,</i> juvenile hormone has been found to reduce a major humoral immune effector-system (phenoloxidase) in both sexes and decrease the encapsulation response in males. Here, we found that juvenile hormone administration prolonged survival time after infection with <i>M. robertsii</i> in males but reduced survival time in females. This study indicates that the effects of juvenile hormone on insect immunity might be more complicated than previously considered. We also suggest that there might be a trade-off between specific and non-specific immunity since, in males, juvenile hormone enhances specific immunity but corrupts non-specific immunity. Our study highlights the importance of using real parasites and pathogens in immuno-ecological studies. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T14:44:49Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-662cc36a58194388abf73da1ee264bc6 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2309-608X |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T14:44:49Z |
| publishDate | 2020-11-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Journal of Fungi |
| spelling | doaj.art-662cc36a58194388abf73da1ee264bc62023-11-20T21:28:57ZengMDPI AGJournal of Fungi2309-608X2020-11-016429810.3390/jof6040298Effect of Juvenile Hormone on Resistance against Entomopathogenic Fungus <i>Metarhizium robertsii</i> Differs between SexesMarkus J. Rantala0Ivan M. Dubovskiy1Mari Pölkki2Tatjana Krama3Jorge Contreras-Garduño4Indrikis A. Krams5Department of Biology, Section of Ecology, University of Turku, FI-20014 Turku, FinlandLaboratory of Biological Plant Protection and Biotechnology, Department Plant Protection, Novosibirsk State Agrarian University, 630039 Novosibirsk, RussiaDepartment of Biology, Section of Ecology, University of Turku, FI-20014 Turku, FinlandDepartment of Biotechnology, Daugavpils University, 5401 Daugavpils, LatviaLaboratorio de Ecología Evolutiva, Escuela Nacional de Estudios Superiores, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Mexico City 04510, MexicoDepartment of Biotechnology, Daugavpils University, 5401 Daugavpils, LatviaJuvenile hormone has been suggested to be a potential mediator in the trade-off between mating and insects’ immunity. Studies on various insect taxons have found that juvenile hormone interferes with humoral and cellular immunity. Although this was shown experimentally, studies using highly virulent parasites or pathogens are lacking so far. In this study, we tested if juvenile hormone administration affected resistance against entomopathogenic fungi, <i>Metarhizium robertsii</i>, in the mealworm beetle, <i>Tenebrio molitor</i>. In previous studies with <i>T. molitor,</i> juvenile hormone has been found to reduce a major humoral immune effector-system (phenoloxidase) in both sexes and decrease the encapsulation response in males. Here, we found that juvenile hormone administration prolonged survival time after infection with <i>M. robertsii</i> in males but reduced survival time in females. This study indicates that the effects of juvenile hormone on insect immunity might be more complicated than previously considered. We also suggest that there might be a trade-off between specific and non-specific immunity since, in males, juvenile hormone enhances specific immunity but corrupts non-specific immunity. Our study highlights the importance of using real parasites and pathogens in immuno-ecological studies.https://www.mdpi.com/2309-608X/6/4/298immune defenseimmunocompetence<i>Metarhizium robertsii</i>pathogenssex<i>Tenebrio molitor</i> |
| spellingShingle | Markus J. Rantala Ivan M. Dubovskiy Mari Pölkki Tatjana Krama Jorge Contreras-Garduño Indrikis A. Krams Effect of Juvenile Hormone on Resistance against Entomopathogenic Fungus <i>Metarhizium robertsii</i> Differs between Sexes Journal of Fungi immune defense immunocompetence <i>Metarhizium robertsii</i> pathogens sex <i>Tenebrio molitor</i> |
| title | Effect of Juvenile Hormone on Resistance against Entomopathogenic Fungus <i>Metarhizium robertsii</i> Differs between Sexes |
| title_full | Effect of Juvenile Hormone on Resistance against Entomopathogenic Fungus <i>Metarhizium robertsii</i> Differs between Sexes |
| title_fullStr | Effect of Juvenile Hormone on Resistance against Entomopathogenic Fungus <i>Metarhizium robertsii</i> Differs between Sexes |
| title_full_unstemmed | Effect of Juvenile Hormone on Resistance against Entomopathogenic Fungus <i>Metarhizium robertsii</i> Differs between Sexes |
| title_short | Effect of Juvenile Hormone on Resistance against Entomopathogenic Fungus <i>Metarhizium robertsii</i> Differs between Sexes |
| title_sort | effect of juvenile hormone on resistance against entomopathogenic fungus i metarhizium robertsii i differs between sexes |
| topic | immune defense immunocompetence <i>Metarhizium robertsii</i> pathogens sex <i>Tenebrio molitor</i> |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2309-608X/6/4/298 |
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