A new mechanism of parasitic wasp symbiotic virus bidirectional regulation of host immunity

Parasitic wasps are a special class of Hymenoptera insects with larvae and parasitic li.

On May 18 , 2022 , the team of Professor Chen Xuexin and Huang Jianhua from Zhejiang University published a research paper entitled "The dual functions of a bracovirus C-type lectin in caterpillar immune response manipulation" in Frontiers in Immunology, an international authoritative journal of immunology , revealing that A new mechanism by which parasitoids use symbiotic virus CvBV -encoded proteins to regulate host immunity bidirectionall.

This study found that parasitism of the diamondback moth Cotesia vestalis significantly reduced the number of hemocytes in the host, Plutella xylostella , and inhibited the host's encapsulation respons.

FigureCvBV_28-1 inhibits the proliferation of host blood cells and significantly reduces the number of host blood cells

At the same time, it was also found that CvBV_28-1 relies on Ca ²⁺ to produce agglutination reaction, has a classic bacterial clearance function against Gram-positive bacteria, and can enhance the immunity of the host when it is infected by bacteria after being parasitized, thereby improving the parasitic wasp larv.

FigureCvBV_28-1 produces Ca ^2+-dependent agglutination against Gram-positive bacteria and significantly improves host surviva.

To sum up, this study found a C - type lectin gene CvBV_28-1 derived from wasp virus CvB.

The first author of this paper is Wu Xiaotong, a doctoral student at Zhejiang University, and the corresponding authors are Professor Chen Xuexin and researcher Huang Jianh.

Paper link: https://d.