TY - JOUR
T1 - Fungal immunity and pathogenesis in mammals versus the invertebrate model organism Galleria mellonella
AU - Smith, Daniel F.Q.
AU - Casadevall, Arturo
N1 - Funding Information:
National Institutes of Health grants 5T32GM008752-18
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 The Author(s) 2021. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of FEMS.
PY - 2021/4/1
Y1 - 2021/4/1
N2 - In recent decades, Galleria mellonella (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) have emerged as a model system to explore experimental aspects of fungal pathogenesis. The benefits of the G. mellonella model include being faster, cheaper, higher throughput and easier compared with vertebrate models. Additionally, as invertebrates, their use is subject to fewer ethical and regulatory issues. However, for G. mellonella models to provide meaningful insight into fungal pathogenesis, the G. mellonella-fungal interactions must be comparable to mammalian-fungal interactions. Indeed, as discussed in the review, studies suggest that G. mellonella and mammalian immune systems share many similarities, and fungal virulence factors show conserved functions in both hosts. While the moth model has opened novel research areas, many comparisons are superficial and leave large gaps of knowledge that need to be addressed concerning specific mechanisms underlying G. mellonella-fungal interactions. Closing these gaps in understanding will strengthen G. mellonella as a model for fungal virulence in the upcoming years. In this review, we provide comprehensive comparisons between fungal pathogenesis in mammals and G. mellonella from immunological and virulence perspectives. When information on an antifungal immune component is unknown in G. mellonella, we include findings from other well-studied Lepidoptera. We hope that by outlining this information available in related species, we highlight areas of needed research and provide a framework for understanding G. mellonella immunity and fungal interactions.
AB - In recent decades, Galleria mellonella (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae) have emerged as a model system to explore experimental aspects of fungal pathogenesis. The benefits of the G. mellonella model include being faster, cheaper, higher throughput and easier compared with vertebrate models. Additionally, as invertebrates, their use is subject to fewer ethical and regulatory issues. However, for G. mellonella models to provide meaningful insight into fungal pathogenesis, the G. mellonella-fungal interactions must be comparable to mammalian-fungal interactions. Indeed, as discussed in the review, studies suggest that G. mellonella and mammalian immune systems share many similarities, and fungal virulence factors show conserved functions in both hosts. While the moth model has opened novel research areas, many comparisons are superficial and leave large gaps of knowledge that need to be addressed concerning specific mechanisms underlying G. mellonella-fungal interactions. Closing these gaps in understanding will strengthen G. mellonella as a model for fungal virulence in the upcoming years. In this review, we provide comprehensive comparisons between fungal pathogenesis in mammals and G. mellonella from immunological and virulence perspectives. When information on an antifungal immune component is unknown in G. mellonella, we include findings from other well-studied Lepidoptera. We hope that by outlining this information available in related species, we highlight areas of needed research and provide a framework for understanding G. mellonella immunity and fungal interactions.
KW - Fungal virulence
KW - Galleria mellonella
KW - Insect immune system
KW - Lepidoptera
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U2 - 10.1093/femspd/ftab013
DO - 10.1093/femspd/ftab013
M3 - Review article
C2 - 33544836
AN - SCOPUS:85104834859
SN - 2049-632X
VL - 79
JO - Pathogens and Disease
JF - Pathogens and Disease
IS - 3
M1 - ftab013
ER -