INFLUENCE OF STEINERNEMA-FELTIAE (FILIPJEV) WOUTS, MRACEK, GERDIN AND BEDDING DD136 STRAIN ON THE HUMORAL AND HEMOCYTIC RESPONSES OF GALLERIA-MELLONELLA (L) LARVAE TO SELECTED BACTERIA

Examination of the short-term interaction of the haemocytes and lysozyme of Galleria mellonella larvae with the entomogenous nematode Steinernema feltiae DD136, in vitro revealed that the nematodes did not reduce the adhesion of Bacillus subtilis or Xenorhabdus nematophilus subsp. nematophilus to larval granulocytes or plasmatocytes. There was no evidence of humoral, sheath or cellular encapsulation of S. feltiae in the haemolymph in vitro or in vivo. Compared with the phosphate-buffered saline-injected larvae the axenic nematodes did not alter the total or differential haemocyte counts during the intial 4 h of parasitism. The ability of the insect larvae to remove B. subtilis and X.nematophilus from the haemolymph was not influenced by axenic S. feltiae. The bacteria from the intestine of surface disinfected, monoxenically cultured S. feltiae elevated the larval total haemocyte counts and damaged the haemocytes. The activity of larval lysozyme was not influenced by axenic S. feltiae.