Publicaties
Characterization of the adipokinetic hormone receptor of the anautogenous flesh fly, Sarcophaga crassipalpis KU Leuven
Adipokinetic hormone (AKH) is an insect neuropeptide mainly involved in fat body energy mobilization. In flies (Phormia regina, Sarcophaga crassipalpis), bugs (Pyrrhocoris apterus) and cockroaches (Periplaneta americana) AKH was also demonstrated to be involved in the regulation of digestion. This makes AKH an important peptide for anautogenous female flies that need to feed on a supplementary protein meal to initiate vitellogenesis, the large ...
The endocrine system controlling sexual reproduction in animals: Part of the evolutionary ancient but well conserved immune system? KU Leuven
Drastic changes in hormone titers, in particular of steroid hormones, are intuitively interpreted as necessary and beneficial for optimal functioning of animals. Peaks in progesterone- and estradiol titers that accompany the estrus cycle in female vertebrates as well as in ecdysteroids at each molt and during metamorphosis of holometabolous insects are prominent examples. A recent analysis of insect metamorphosis yielded the view that, in ...
Development of primary cell cultures using hemocytes and phagocytic tissue cells of Locusta migratoria: an application for locust immunity studies KU Leuven
Insect cell cultures played central roles in unraveling many insect physiological and immunological processes. Regardless, despite imminent needs, insect cell lines were developed primarily from Dipteran and Lepidopteran orders, leaving many important insects such as Orthopteran locusts under-represented. Besides the lack of cell lines, the slow progress in development of in vitro techniques is attributed to poor communications between different ...
Pharmacological regulation of digestion in the anautogenous flesh fly, Sarcophaga crassipalpis, by simple injection of 6-hydroxydopamine KU Leuven
Female anautogenous Sarcophaga flesh flies need a protein meal to start large-scale yolk polypeptides (YPs) production and oocyte maturation. Protein meal rapidly elicits a brain-dependent increase in midgut proteolytic activity. Trypsin and chymotrypsin together represent over 80% of protease activity in liver-fed flies. Abdominal injection of 6-hydroxydopamine (6-OHDA) dose-dependently prohibits this increase in proteolytic activity at ...
Locust cellular defense against infections: Sites of pathogen clearance and hemocyte proliferation KU Leuven
The locust cellular defense is mediated by hemocytes and hematopoietic tissue. In Locusta migratoria, the hemocytes and hematopoietic tissue mutually assist each other in clearing invading pathogens from circulation. A β-1, 3-glucan infection induces nodule formation and apoptotic, TUNEL positive, cells in the hematopoietic tissue and massive loss of hemocytes in the circulation, calling for instant proliferation of hemocytes and hematopoietic ...
Differential peptidomics highlights adipokinetic hormone as key player in regulating digestion in anautogenous flesh fly, Sarcophaga crassipalpis KU Leuven
Females of anautogenous flesh flies, Sarcophaga crassipalpis, need a protein meal in order to produce their first batch of eggs. This protein meal elicits an increase in midgut proteolytic activity that is under neuropeptidergic regulation. Time series of decapitation and rescue experiments of liver fed flies evidenced the need of a peptide factor released by corpora cardiaca (CC) within four hours post protein feeding in order to assure ...