Data from: Independent and interactive effects of immune activation and larval diet on adult immune function, growth and development in the greater wax moth (Galleria mellonella)
Data files
Jul 11, 2018 version files 58.25 KB
Abstract
Organisms in the wild are likely to face multiple immune challenges as well
as additional ecological stressors, yet their interactive effects on immune
function are poorly understood. Insects are found to respond to cues of
increased infection risk by enhancing their immune capacity. However, such
adaptive plasticity in immune function may be limited by physiological and
environmental constraints. Here, we investigated the effects of two environmental
stressors – poor larval diet and an artificial parasite-like immune
challenge at the pupal stage – on adult immune function, growth and development
in the greater wax moth (Galleria mellonella). Males whose immune
system was activated with an artificial parasite-like immune challenge had
weaker immune response – measured as strength of encapsulation response
– as adults compared to the control groups, but only when raised in highnutrition
larval diet. Immune activation did not negatively affect adult
immune response in males reared in low-nutrition larval diet, indicating
that poor larval diet improved the capacity of the insects to respond to
repeated immune challenges. Low-nutrition larval diet also had a positive
independent effect on immune capacity in females, yet it negatively affected
development time and adult body mass in both sexes. As in the nature
immune challenges are rarely isolated, and adverse nutritional environment
may indicate an elevated risk of infection, resilience to repeated immune
challenges as a response to poor nutritional environment could provide a
significant fitness advantage. This study highlights the importance of considering
environmental context when investigating the effects of immune activation
in insects.