Our data propose that the Imd pathway regulates the longevity mechanism through two downstream branches (Fig. 5D): 1) positively by stress tolerance genes of p-JNK [25,29,33,34] and 2) negatively by antimicrobial peptide genes of NF-kB that function positively in the immune response to bacterial infection [9,35]. This evidence concerns the gene NFKB1 and bacterial infectious disease.