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SUMMARY:The role of nutrients in host-pathogen interactions - Dr Sheena Co
 tter (University of Lincoln)
DTSTART:20191016T150000Z
DTEND:20191016T160000Z
UID:TALK127129@talks.cam.ac.uk
CONTACT:Theodora Anderson
DESCRIPTION:Animals are beset by numerous parasites\, whose effects range 
 from mildly debilitating to fatal. As a consequence they have evolved a ra
 nge of behavioural and physiological responses to deal with this threat\, 
 including the deployment of a suite of immune responses. However\, an effe
 ctive immune response depends upon the nutritional state of the host. The 
 host needs its resources to service its immune response\, whilst the paras
 ite needs the host’s resources to grow and reproduce\, and the ‘ideal
 ’ nutritional state for a successful parasitic infection may not be the 
 same as that of an effective immune response. Which leads to the question\
 , which diets best suit the needs of the host and the parasite?\nInsects p
 rovide an excellent\, ethically sound\, model to address this question. Th
 ey harbour a range of micro (bacteria/viruses/fungi/protozoa) and macropar
 asites and their immune response is evolutionarily and functionally equiva
 lent to the mammalian innate system. Using insect models\, we show that di
 fferent arms of the immune system work most effectively in different regio
 ns of nutrient space\, and that\, when infected\, hosts can modify their i
 ntake of nutrients to improve their immune response. We also show that par
 asite growth can be impeded directly by the host diet\, and that hosts may
  in fact choose a diet that inhibits parasite replication\, or mitigates i
 ts negative effects via tolerance. Thus the nutritional environment can ha
 ve both bottom-up and top-down effects on host-parasite interactions\, and
  nutrient intake plasticity is a likely target for selection in the battle
  against parasites.\n
LOCATION:Lecture Theatre 2\, Department of Veterinary Medicine
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