An immune response-dependent mechanism for the vertical transmission of an entomopathogen.
An exceptionally efficient mechanism for the vertical transmission of a parasitic gregarine is dependent on the insect host's immune response. Gametocysts of Ascogregarina chagasi on the genital accessory glands of adult female sand flies (Lutzomyia longipalpis) become encapsulated through hemocyte-mediated immune reactions. Oocysts of A. chagasi, ejected into the lumen of the glands owing to pressure exerted by this capsule, become glued to eggshells and are subsequently ingested by larvae. In L. longipalpis with an experimentally suppressed encapsulation reaction, fewer accessory glands contained oocysts of A. chagasi.
Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, Yale University School of Medicine, New Haven, Connecticut 06510.
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Warburg
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Ostrovska
D000818:Animals; D004175:Diptera / Q000276:immunology* / Q000469:parasitology; D005260:Female; D005836:Genitalia, Female / Q000473:pathology; D006790:Host-Parasite Interactions; D008297:Male; D011576:Psychodidae / Q000276:immunology / Q000469:parasitology