Driven by co‐evolution with pathogens, host immunity continuously adapts to optimize
defence against pathogens within a given environment. Recent advances in genetics …

Rapidly expanding genomic information offers important insights into the mechanisms of
acquired immunity and has fostered progress in comparative immunology. However, the …

Background The effect of anthropogenic environments on the function of the vertebrate
immune system is a problem of general importance. For example, it relates to the increasing …

In wild populations, individuals are regularly exposed to a wide range of pathogens. In this
context, organisms must elicit and regulate effective immune responses to protect their …

Host–pathogen interactions may result in either directional selection or in pressure for the
maintenance of polymorphism at the molecular level. Hence signatures of both positive and …

The ongoing arms race between hosts and microbes has fueled the evolution of novel
strategies for diversifying the molecules involved in immune responses. Characterization of …

Our present understanding of the functioning and evolutionary history of invertebrate innate
immunity derives mostly from studies on a few model species belonging to ecdysozoa. In …

Individuals in natural populations are frequently exposed to a wide range of pathogens.
Given the diverse profile of gene products involved in responses to different types of …

Views on the evolution of immunity have been redefined as studies in protostomes,
invertebrate deuterostomes, and various vertebrates have elucidated molecular details of …

Our understanding of invertebrate immune systems is undergoing a paradigm shift. Until
recently, the host defence responses of invertebrates were thought to rely on limited …