Insects can rapidly clear microbial infections by producing a variety of immune-induced molecules including antibacterial and͞or antifungal peptides͞polypeptides. In this report, we present the isolation, structural characterization, and biological properties of two variants of a group of bioactive, slightly cationic peptides, referred to as alloferons. Two peptides were isolated from the blood of an experimentally infected insect, the blow fly Calliphora vicina (Diptera), with the following amino acid sequences: HGVSGHGQH-GVHG (alloferon 1) and GVSGHGQHGVHG (alloferon 2). Although these peptides have no clear homologies with known immune response modifiers, protein database searches established some structural similarities with proteins containing amino acid stretches similar to alloferon. In vitro experiments reveal that the synthetic version of alloferon has stimulatory activities on natural killer lymphocytes, whereas in vivo trials indicate induction of IFN production in mice after treatments with synthetic alloferon. Additional in vivo experiments in mice indicate that alloferon has antiviral and antitumoral capabilities. Taken together, these results suggest that this peptide, which has immunomodulatory properties, may have therapeutic capacities. The fact that insects may produce cytokine-like materials modulating basic mechanisms for human immunity suggests a source of anti-infection and antitumoral biopharmaceuticals.insect innate immunity ͉ cytokine-like ͉ immunomodulatory peptide

Newcastle disease vaccine (NDV)-loaded chitosan microspheres (NDV-CM) were prepared. Stimulatory effects of these NDV-CM on antibody response compared to free NDV were examined in vitro and in vivo. In vitro stimulation of macrophages with virus vaccine resulted in higher number of cells compared to saline-treated control. Both NDV and NDV-CM induced secretion of interleukin-1 (IL-1) in dose dependent manner and the secretion of IL-1 by NDV-CM was delayed compared to free NDV. Irrespective of vaccine formulation, NDV subunit antigen was not effective in preventing mortality of the birds after challenge. However, CM loaded with NDV made of whole viron had antibody responses and protection similar to those shown by ND-K, a commercial inactivated oilemulsion vaccine.