Amphibian innate immunity and impact of environmental stress

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One third of >7000 amphibian species are threatened globally. The etiology is complex, with emerging pathogens the proximal cause. Mass amphibian die-offs resulting from fungal and viral infections suggest an environment that undermines frog immune system competency to defend against infection. At the forefront of innate immunity, the first line of defense against pathogens, is the skin epithelial barrier and the surface secreted host defense peptides (HDPs). Together they act as the interface between an organism’s external and internal environments. Great diversity of HDPs is found amongst amphibians and studies have documented their antimicrobial activity against a broad-spectrum of pathogens. Recent discoveries in mammals suggest HDPs are multifaceted and play an important role in immune modulation through coordination of molecular and cellular networks. Despite this, studies on amphibian HDPs have been greatly hampered due to a lack of feasible