Recent Advances in the Use of Galleria mellonella Model to Study Immune Responses against Human Pathogens

• Published in: Journal of fungi (Basel) Vol. 4; no. 4; p. 128
• Main Authors: Pereira, Thais Cristine, de Barros, Patrícia Pimentel, Fugisaki, Luciana Ruano de Oliveira, Rossoni, Rodnei Dennis, Ribeiro, Felipe de Camargo, de Menezes, Raquel Teles, Junqueira, Juliana Campos, Scorzoni, Liliana
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Switzerland MDPI AG 27.11.2018; MDPI
• Subjects: Antimicrobial peptides; Bacteria; Clotting; Enzymes; experimental model; free radical production; Galleria mellonella; Gram-positive bacteria; Granulocytes; Hemocytes; Hemolymph; Immune response; Immune system; Immunization; in vivo study; Innate immunity; Invertebrates; Mammals; Melanization; Microorganisms; Nodulation; Pathogens; Peptides; Phagocytosis; primary immunization; Proteins; Review; Streptococcus infections; Virulence; Viruses; melanization; experimental model; clotting; immune response; free radical production; in vivo study; primary immunization; Galleria mellonella; hemocytes; antimicrobial peptides
• ISSN: 2309-608X; 2309-608X
• DOI: 10.3390/jof4040128

The use of invertebrates for in vivo studies in microbiology is well established in the scientific community. Larvae of are a widely used model for studying pathogenesis, the efficacy of new antimicrobial compounds, and immune responses. The immune system of larvae is structurally and functionally similar to the innate immune response of mammals, which makes this model suitable for such studies. In this review, cellular responses (hemocytes activity: phagocytosis, nodulation, and encapsulation) and humoral responses (reactions or soluble molecules released in the hemolymph as antimicrobial peptides, melanization, clotting, free radical production, and primary immunization) are discussed, highlighting the use of as a model of immune response to different human pathogenic microorganisms.