The innate immune response provides the first line of defense against invading pathogens,
and immune disorders cause a variety of diseases. The fruit fly Drosophila melanogaster …

The host defence of insects includes a combination of cellular and humoral responses. The
cellular arm of the insect innate immune system includes mechanisms that are directly …

Insects combat infection by mounting powerful immune responses that are mediated by
hemocytes, the fat body, the midgut, the salivary glands and other tissues. Foreign …

Insect respiration has long been thought to be solely dependent on an elaborate tracheal
system without assistance from the circulatory system or immune cells,. Here we describe …

Melanin production from different types of phenoloxidases (POs) confers immunity from a
variety of pathogens ranging from viruses and microorganisms to parasites. The arthropod …

In this FlyBook chapter, we present a survey of the current literature on the development of
the hematopoietic system in Drosophila. The Drosophila blood system consists entirely of …

Antimicrobial peptides (AMPs) are host-encoded antibiotics that combat invading
microorganisms. These short, cationic peptides have been implicated in many biological …

Melanization and Toll pathway activation are essential innate immune mechanisms in
insects, which result in the generation of reactive compounds and antimicrobial peptides …

Immune cells provide defense against non‐self and have recently been shown to also play
key roles in diverse processes such as development, metabolism, and tumor progression …

The melanization response is an important defense mechanism in arthropods. This reaction
is mediated by phenoloxidases (POs), which are activated by complex extracellular serine …