According to a new study by researchers at Penn State, eating fire ants may cause a lizard's immune system to be attacked. The study assessed how the immune system responds to eating lizards and being stung by ants, and may help researchers understand how other native species respond to invaders.
As the climate warms, fire ants are expanding their range in the southeast. When they sting, they inject venom that causes an immune response in a wide range of species. Eastern fence lizards can cause paralysis and even death if they are repeatedly stung. Fire ants and other ants are eaten by lizards.
According to Tracy Langkilde, professor of biology at Penn State, lizards with fire ants have different immune profiles than lizards without them. "Because the immune system is so critical for survival, we wanted to determine if the differences in immune profiles can be attributed to lizards being stung by fire ants or eating fire ants."
Three weeks of lizards being fed dead fire ants or being stung by fire ants resulted in six immune measures being investigated.
The assessment included measures of the innate immune system, which an individual is born with, and the adaptive immune system, which develops after exposure to a foreign substance. We were able to see how different immune resources are used in response to fire ants.
The results of biological invasions are presented.
Three immune measures were improved when lizards were fed fire ants. An elevation in a type of white blood cells called basophils, an increase in complement activity, and an increase in a type of IgM known to be were observed by the researchers.
Tylan said that lizards are expected to survive a fire ants attack. The fire ant-specific antibodies and complement can help bind up venom so it doesn't hurt the body. It's possible that exposure to fire ant venom can cause an increase in the immune system. Eating fire ants might help lizards prepare for venom exposure.
According to the researchers, these results can help explain immune patterns in lizards.
According to Tylan, lizards caught from areas with fire ants have higher anti-fire ant and basophils than lizards from areas without fire ants. The immune responses of lizards when they were fed fire ants were the same as they were when they weren't.
Some results did not match the patterns observed in the field. The stress of fire ant encounters may affect immune function in other ways, according to the researchers.
Langkilde said that the results help us understand the health consequences of exposure to invaders. Our results show that native animals may be able to offset the effects of venom exposure by consuming the same species.
More information: C. Tylan et al, Consumption of fire ants, an invasive predator and prey of native lizards, may enhance immune functions needed to combat envenomation, Biological Invasions (2022). DOI: 10.1007/s10530-022-02939-8 Journal information: Biological Invasions
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