Characterisation of Galleria mellonella innate immune response to Mycobacterium tuberculosis infection

Why did we fund this Fellowship?

This award aims to develop reagents and methods for in depth characterisation studies of a Galleria mellonella model of tuberculosis, increasing the number of in vivo mouse studies that can be replaced with Galleria.

Tuberculosis (TB) is the leading infectious cause of death worldwide and there is rising incidence of multidrug-resistant infections. A range of animals are used to model TB infection, including mice, rabbits, guinea pigs and non-human primates. Infected animals experience clinical signs that may include raised temperature, respiratory distress and weight loss. During his NC3Rs-funded PhD, Dr Masanori Asai developed a Galleria model of tuberculosis that, unlike other in vivo models, develops granuloma-like structures that are seen in human disease. Galleria provide a number of advantages in infection studies over the use of other invertebrates or mammalian models, including the ability to be incubated at 37^oC allowing infections to be studied at the same temperature as in humans.

• Awards and recognition: Imperial College Provost Award, Animal Research