Projektnummer

0054424

Zusammenfassung

Tribolium beetles excrete Quinones into their flour environment. Quinones show broad antimicrobial activity, and therefore can be considered as an "external" immune defence. Previously Dr. Joop could demonstrate that the production of Quinones is traded-off with the internally acting innate immune system, and that the excretion of Quinones comes at the cost of decreased larval survival. Based on these findings, the proposed project aims at an in-depth analysis of the evolution and function of external immunity. Four main questions will be addressed: (i) Does Quinone excretion enhance b...