The Production of Antimicrobial Peptides Is One of the Most

Multiple Choice

The production of antimicrobial peptides is one of the most evolutionarily ancient mechanisms of defense for multicellular organisms, and most eukaryotic species make many different forms of these proteins. For instance, human paneth cells in the gastrointestinal epithelium make 21 different defensins. The reason for this diversity of antimicrobial peptides is:

A) Epithelial cells make different forms than those made by neutrophils.
B) Neutrophils make many different defensins and store them as inactive proteins in their secretory granules.
C) Most of them are produced only in response to infection.
D) The production of different peptides is induced following a bacterial infection versus a fungal infection.
E) Each one has distinct activities against Gram-negative bacteria, Gram-positive bacteria, or fungi.