Comparative Analysis of the Binding of Antibodies Prepared against the Insect Spodoptera exigua and against the Mycopathogen Nomuraea rileyi

• Published in: Journal of invertebrate pathology Vol. 75; no. 2; pp. 107 - 116
• Main Authors: Pendland, Jacquelyn C, Boucias, Drion G
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Amsterdam Elsevier Inc 01-02-2000; Elsevier
• Subjects: Animals; Antibody Specificity; Basement Membrane - immunology; Biochemistry. Physiology. Immunology; Biological and medical sciences; extracellular matrix; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; fungal cell walls; granulocytes; hemocytes; hemolymph; Hemolymph - immunology; insect fungi; insect immunity; Insecta; Invertebrates; Mice; Microbiology; Mitosporic Fungi - immunology; Mycology; Noctuidae; Nomuraea rileyi; Pathogenicity, host-agent relations, miscellaneous strains, epidemiology; Physiology. Development; Spodoptera - immunology; Spodoptera - microbiology; Spodoptera exigua; granulocytes; hemolymph; Nomuraea rileyi; insect fungi; hemocytes; extracellular matrix; insect immunity; fungal cell walls; Spodoptera exigua; Entomopathogen; Host parasite relation; Antibody; Insecta; Granulocyte; Hemolymph; Immunity; Cell wall; Fungi; Hemocyte; Larva; Arthropoda; Lepidoptera; Cross reaction; Extracellular matrix; Fungi Imperfecti; Noctuidae; Invertebrata; Immunofluorescence; Comparative study; Thallophyta
• ISSN: 0022-2011; 1096-0805
• DOI: 10.1006/jipa.1999.4915

Polyclonal antibodies were produced in mice against Spodoptera exigua (beet armyworm) larval hemolymph and hemocytes and against cell wall surfaces of hyphal bodies and hyphae of the entomopathogenic hyphomycete Nomuraea rileyi. In addition to exhibiting strong activity against their original antigenic substrates, all of the antibodies cross-react extensively with other substrates. The hemolymph antibody binds to hemocytes and vice versa, and both antibodies cross-react to the insect fat body basement membrane (extracellular matrix (ECM) and to N. rileyi and Beauveria bassiana (another entomopathogenic fungus) cell wall surfaces (ECM). Likewise, the anti-fungal antibodies cross-react with S. exigua hemolymph and hemocytes, especially the granules that may contain ECM components, and with fat body basement membrane. These cross-reactivities are specific as indicated by negative controls in the microscopy and Western blotting assays. Parallel labeling experiments using Con A suggest that the reactive epitopes contain mannose; however, none of the antibodies bind to mannose residues of nonentomopathogenic Candida albicans or Saccharomyces cerevisiae yeast cells. Thus, these cross-reactivities suggest that the host mimicry expressed by surface components of entomopathogenic fungi represents an important pathogenic determinant.