title: Comparative psychoneuroimmunology: evidence from the insects.
abstract: Interactions between immune systems, nervous systems, and behavior are well established in vertebrates. A comparative examination of these interactions in other animals will help us understand their evolution and present adaptive functions. Insects show immune-behavioral interactions similar to those seen in vertebrates, suggesting that many of them may have a highly conserved function. Activation of an immune response in insects results in illness-induced anorexia, behavioral fever, changes in reproductive behavior, and decreased learning ability in a broad range of species. Flight-or-fight behaviors result in a decline in disease resistance. In insects, illness-induced anorexia may enhance immunity. Stress-induced immunosuppression is probably due to physiological conflicts between the immune response and those of other physiological processes. Because insects occupy a wide range of ecological niches, they will be useful in examining how some immune-behavioral interactions are sculpted by an animal's behavioral ecology.
authors.affiliation: Dalhousie University, Canada.
authors.forename: Shelley A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Adamo
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000855:Anorexia / Q000276:immunology; D001522:Behavior, Animal / Q000502:physiology*; D004924:Escape Reaction / Q000502:physiology; D005247:Feeding Behavior / Q000502:physiology; D007301:Insect Hormones / Q000276:immunology / Q000502:physiology*; D007313:Insecta / Q000276:immunology*; D007858:Learning / Q000502:physiology; D015213:Neuroimmunomodulation / Q000276:immunology / Q000502:physiology*; D011598:Psychoneuroimmunology / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D007301:Insect Hormones