Finally, the observed delay between PPO localization to hyphal surfaces and melanogenesis renders B. bassiana a tractable model to study the yet poorly understood molecular interactions that culminate in PPO tethering and activation on microbial surfaces; these studies would be difficult to perform in other infection models where the microbe becomes quickly melanized upon contact with the hemolymph, as in the case of Plasmodium ookinetes. Here, PPOX is linked to infection.