Review

Nature Reviews Molecular Cell Biology 8, 542-551 (July 2007) | doi:10.1038/nrm2202

Drosophila melanogaster embryonic haemocytes: masters of multitasking

Will Wood1 & Antonio Jacinto2  About the authors

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Drosophila melanogaster haemocytes constitute the cellular arm of a robust innate immune system in flies. In the adult and larva, these cells operate as the first line of defence against invading microorganisms: they phagocytose pathogens and produce antimicrobial peptides. However, in the sterile environment of the embryo, these important immune functions are largely redundant. Instead, throughout development, embryonic haemocytes are occupied with other tasks: they undergo complex migrations and carry out several non-immune functions that are crucial for successful embryogenesis.

Author affiliations

  1. Department of Biology and Biochemistry, University of Bath, BA2 7AY, UK.
    Email: w.wood@bath.ac.uk
  2. Instituto de Medicina Molecular, Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de Lisboa, Avenida Professor Egas Moniz, 1649-028 Lisboa, Portugal.
    Email: ajacinto@fm.ul.pt

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