Immune mechanisms in insects.

Understanding immune evasion by parasites in their insect vectors requires some understanding of the insect immune system. Until fairly recently, technical difficulties in handling cells and plasma hampered laboratory investigations into insect immunology, but modern techniques combined with a sound knowledge of insect physiology are now permitting rapid advances. Rather than discussing the many controversies, this review aims to point out current areas of research into cellular and 'humoral' mechanisms that might be followed up by parasitologists.