Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2016:61:239-56.
doi: 10.1146/annurev-ento-010715-023924. Epub 2015 Dec 11.

Reproduction-Immunity Trade-Offs in Insects

Robin A Schwenke  1   2 , Brian P Lazzaro  1   2 , Mariana F Wolfner  1   3
Affiliations
Review

Reproduction-Immunity Trade-Offs in Insects

Robin A Schwenke et al. Annu Rev Entomol. 2016.

Abstract

Immune defense and reproduction are physiologically and energetically demanding processes and have been observed to trade off in a diversity of female insects. Increased reproductive effort results in reduced immunity, and reciprocally, infection and activation of the immune system reduce reproductive output. This trade-off can manifest at the physiological level (within an individual) and at the evolutionary level (genetic distinction among individuals in a population). The resource allocation model posits that the trade-off arises because of competition for one or more limiting resources, and we hypothesize that pleiotropic signaling mechanisms regulate allocation of that resource between reproductive and immune processes. We examine the role of juvenile hormone, 20-hydroxyecdysone, and insulin/insulin-like growth factor-like signaling in regulating both oogenesis and immune system activity, and propose a signaling network that may mechanistically regulate the trade-off. Finally, we discuss implications of the trade-off in an ecological and evolutionary context.

Keywords: egg production; hormones; infection; life-history trade-off; resource allocation; signaling pleiotropy.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
A generalized mechanism for the interactions between immunity and reproduction. Reproductive pathways are red, metabolic signaling pathways are blue, and immunity pathways are green. A female insect host responds to a pathogen via IMD and Toll pathways and cellular immune activation. Activation of the IMD pathway activates JNK signaling, which inhibits IIS signaling. The end result is the production of AMPs. The receipt of SP during mating alters the typical response to a pathogen. SP stimulates JH synthesis, which negatively regulates the cellular immune response and the production of AMPs. Abbreviations: 20E, 20-hydroxyecdysone; AMPs, antimicrobial peptides; FOXO, forkhead box, subgroup O; IIS, insulin/insulin-like growth factor-like signaling; IMD, immune deficiency; JH, juvenile hormone; JNK, c-Jun N-terminal kinase; SP, Sex Peptide; YP, yolk protein.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Abrisqueta M, Süren-Castillo S, Maestro JL. Insulin receptor-mediated nutritional signalling regulates juvenile hormone biosynthesis and vitellogenin production in the German cockroach. Insect Biochem Mol Biol. 2014;49:14–23. - PubMed
    1. Abu-Hakima R, Davey KG. Two actions of juvenile hormone on the follicle cells of Rhodnius prolixus: the importance of volume changes. J Exp Biol. 1977;69:33–44.
    1. Adamo SA, Fidler TL, Forestell CA. Illness-induced anorexia and its possible function in the caterpillar, Manduca sexta. Brain Behav Immun. 2007;21:292–300. - PubMed
    1. Ahmed AM, Baggott SL, Maingon R, Hurd H. The costs of mounting an immune response are reflected in the reproductive fitness of the mosquito Anopheles gambiae. Oikos. 2002;97:371–77.
    1. Ahmed AM, Hurd H. Immune stimulation and malaria infection impose reproductive costs in Anopheles gambiae via follicular apoptosis. Microbes Infect. 2006;8:308–15. - PubMed

Publication types