Data from: The within-host dynamics of infection in trans-generationally primed flour beetles

Many taxa exhibit plastic immune responses initiated after primary
microbial exposure that provide increased protection against
disease-induced mortality and the fitness costs of infection. In several
arthropod species, this protection can even be passed from parents to
offspring through a phenomenon called trans-generational immune priming.
Here, we first demonstrate that trans-generational priming is a repeatable
phenomenon in flour beetles (Tribolium castaneum) primed and infected with
Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt). We then quantify the within-host dynamics of
microbes and host physiological responses in infected offspring from
primed and unprimed mothers by monitoring bacterial density and using
mRNA-seq to profile host gene expression, respectively, over the acute
infection period. We find that priming increases inducible resistance
against Bt around a critical temporal juncture where host septicaemic
trajectories, and consequently survival, may be determined in unprimed
individuals. Our results identify a highly differentially expressed
biomarker of priming, containing an EIF4-e domain, in uninfected
individuals, as well as several other candidate genes. Moreover, the
induction and decay dynamics of gene expression over time suggest a
metabolic shift in primed individuals. The identified bacterial and gene
expression dynamics are likely to influence patterns of bacterial fitness
and disease transmission in natural populations.