The nociception genes painless and Piezo are required for the cellular immune response of Drosophila larvae to wasp parasitization.
In vertebrates, interaction between the nervous system and immune system is important to protect a challenged host from stress inputs from external sources. In this study, we demonstrate that sensory neurons are involved in the cellular immune response elicited by wasp infestation of Drosophila larvae. Multidendritic class IV neurons sense contacts from external stimuli and induce avoidance behaviors for host defense. Our findings show that inactivation of these sensory neurons impairs the cellular response against wasp parasitization. We also demonstrate that the nociception genes encoding the mechanosensory receptors Painless and Piezo, both expressed in class IV neurons, are essential for the normal cellular immune response to parasite challenge.
Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA.
Yumiko
Y
Tokusumi
Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA.
Tsuyoshi
T
Tokusumi
Department of Biological Sciences, University of Notre Dame, Notre Dame, IN 46556, USA. Electronic address: rschulz@nd.edu.
Robert A
RA
Schulz
D000818:Animals; D004330:Drosophila / Q000276:immunology* / Q000469:parasitology*; D029721:Drosophila Proteins / Q000276:immunology*; D007473:Ion Channels / Q000276:immunology*; D007814:Larva / Q000276:immunology / Q000469:parasitology; D015213:Neuroimmunomodulation / Q000276:immunology; D009619:Nociceptors / Q000502:physiology*; D014863:Wasps / Q000472:pathogenicity*
D029721:Drosophila Proteins; D007473:Ion Channels; C571430:Piezo protein, Drosophila; C474592:pain protein, Drosophila
Cation channel nociceptor; Cellular immune response; Drosophila larvae; Lamellocytes; Multidendritic sensory neurons; Wasp parasitization