Priming (immunology)

CD4 effector activity can include cytotoxicity, but more frequently it involves the secretion of a set of cytokines that directs the target cell to make a particular response.

In 1972, Boman and colleagues' experiments overturned this assumption, showing that fruit flies could be "vaccinated" against a repeat infection by the same bacteria if they were first exposed to a freeze-thawed pathogen.

Results of immune priming research commonly find that mechanism conferring defense against a given pathogen is dependent on the kind of insect species and microbe used for given experiment.

[6] In arthropod model, the red flour beetle Tribolium castaneum, it has been shown that the route of infection (cuticular, septic or oral) is important for the defence mechanism generation.

[7] Innate immunity in insects is based on non-cellular mechanisms, including production of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs), reactive oxygen species (ROS) or activation of the prophenol oxidase cascade.

[7][9] The first mechanism is induction of long-lasting defences, such as circulating immune molecules, by the priming antigens in the host body, which remain until the secondary encounter.

[7] Trans-generational immune priming (TGIP) describes the transfer of parental immunological experience to its progeny, which may help the survival of the offspring when challenged with the same pathogen.