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Effect of nutrient deprivation on the susceptibility of Galleria mellonella larvae to infection.

ABSTRACT: Larvae of Galleria mellonella are widely used to study the virulence of microbial pathogens and for assessing the potency of antimicrobial agents. This work examined the effect of nutritional deprivation on the ability of larvae to withstand infection in order to establish standardized conditions for the treatment of larvae for in vivo testing. Larvae deprived of food for seven days demonstrated an increased susceptibility to infection by the yeast Candida albicans. These larvae displayed a lower density of hemocytes compared with controls but hemocytes from starved and control larvae demonstrated the same ability to kill yeast cells. Hemolymph from starved larvae demonstrated reduced expression of a range of antimicrobial peptides (e.g., lipocalin) and immune proteins (e.g., apolipophorin and arylphorin). Deprivation of G. mellonella larvae of food leads to a reduction in the cellular and immune responses and an increased susceptibility to infection. Researchers utilizing these larvae should ensure adequate food is provided to larvae in order to allow valid comparisons to be made between results from different laboratories.

SUBMITTER: Banville N

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3524148 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Oct

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

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Effect of nutrient deprivation on the susceptibility of Galleria mellonella larvae to infection.

Banville Nessa N Browne Niall N Kavanagh Kevin K

Virulence 20121001 6

Larvae of Galleria mellonella are widely used to study the virulence of microbial pathogens and for assessing the potency of antimicrobial agents. This work examined the effect of nutritional deprivation on the ability of larvae to withstand infection in order to establish standardized conditions for the treatment of larvae for in vivo testing. Larvae deprived of food for seven days demonstrated an increased susceptibility to infection by the yeast Candida albicans. These larvae displayed a lowe ...[more]

PMID: 23076277

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Project description:The use of Galleria mellonella as a model host to elucidate microbial pathogenesis and search for novel drugs and therapies has been well appreciated over the past years. However, the effect of microorganisms with functional appeal in the specific host remains scarce. The present study investigates the effect of treatment with selected lactic acid bacteria (LAB) with probiotic potential, as potential protective agents by using live or heat-killed cells at 6 and 24 h prior to infection with Listeria monocytogenes and Staphylococcus aureus or as potential therapeutic agents by using cell-free supernatants (CFS) after infection with the same pathogens. The employed LAB strains were Lactobacillus pentosus B281 and Lactobacillus plantarum B282 (isolated from table olive fermentations) along with Lactobacillus rhamnosus GG (inhabitant of human intestinal tract). Kaplan-Meier survival curves were plotted while the pathogen's persistence in the larval hemolymph was determined by microbiological analysis. It was observed that the time (6 or 24 h) and type (live or heat-killed cells) of challenge period with LAB prior to infection greatly affected the survival of infected larvae. The highest decrease of L. monocytogenes population in the hemolymph was observed in groups challenged for 6 h with heat-killed cells by an average of 1.8 log units compared to non challenged larvae for strains B281 (p 0.0322), B282 (p 0.0325), and LGG (p 0.0356). In the case of S. aureus infection, the population of the pathogen decreased in the hemolymph by 1 log units at 8 h post infection in the groups challenged for 6 h with heat-killed cells of strains B281 (p 0.0161) and B282 (p 0.0096) and by 1.8 log units in groups challenged with heat-killed cells of LGG strain (p 0.0175). Further use of CFS of each LAB strain did not result in any significant prolonged survival but interestingly it resulted in pronounced decrease of L. monocytogenes in the hemolymph at 24 h and 48 h after infection by more than 1 log unit (p < 0.05) depending on the strain. The results of the present work support the broader use of G. mellonella larvae as a low cost in vivo tool for screening for probiotic properties.

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Effect of nutrient deprivation on the susceptibility of Galleria mellonella larvae to infection.

Publications

Effect of nutrient deprivation on the susceptibility of Galleria mellonella larvae to infection.

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