Title | The within-host dynamics of infection in trans-generationally primed flour beetles. |
Publication Type | Journal Article |
Year of Publication | 2017 |
Authors | Tate, AT, Andolfatto, P, Demuth, JP, Graham, AL |
Journal | Mol Ecol |
Volume | 26 |
Issue | 14 |
Pagination | 3794-3807 |
Date Published | 2017 Jul |
ISSN | 1365-294X |
Keywords | Animals, Bacillus thuringiensis, Disease Resistance, Female, Transcriptome, Tribolium |
Abstract | <p>Many taxa exhibit plastic immune responses initiated after primary microbial exposure that provide increased protection against disease-induced mortality and the fitness costs of infection. In several arthropod species, this protection can even be passed from parents to offspring through a phenomenon called trans-generational immune priming. Here, we first demonstrate that trans-generational priming is a repeatable phenomenon in flour beetles (Tribolium castaneum) primed and infected with Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt). We then quantify the within-host dynamics of microbes and host physiological responses in infected offspring from primed and unprimed mothers by monitoring bacterial density and using mRNA-seq to profile host gene expression, respectively, over the acute infection period. We find that priming increases inducible resistance against Bt around a critical temporal juncture where host septicaemic trajectories, and consequently survival, may be determined in unprimed individuals. Our results identify a highly differentially expressed biomarker of priming, containing an EIF4-e domain, in uninfected individuals, as well as several other candidate genes. Moreover, the induction and decay dynamics of gene expression over time suggest a metabolic shift in primed individuals. The identified bacterial and gene expression dynamics are likely to influence patterns of bacterial fitness and disease transmission in natural populations.</p> |
DOI | 10.1111/mec.14088 |
Alternate Journal | Mol Ecol |
PubMed ID | 28277618 |
PubMed Central ID | PMC5653231 |
Grant List | R01 GM083228 / GM / NIGMS NIH HHS / United States |