Molecular traces of < i > Drosophila < /i > hemocytes reveal transcriptomic conservation with vertebrate myeloid cells

by Sang-Ho Yoon, Bumsik Cho, Daewon Lee, Hanji Kim, Jiwon Shim, Jin-Wu NamDrosophila hemocytes serve as the primary defense system against harmful threats, allowing the animals to thrive. Hemocytes are often compared to vertebrate innate immune system cells due to the observed functional similarities between the two. However, the similarities have primarily been established based on a limited number of genes and their functional homologies. Thus, a systematic analysis using transcriptomic data could offer novel insights intoDrosophila hemocyte function and provide new perspectives on the evolution of the immune system. Here, we performed cross-species comparative analyses using single-cell RNA-sequencing data fromDrosophila and vertebrate immune cells. We found several conserved markers for the cluster of differentiation (CD) genes inDrosophila hemocytes and validated the role ofCG8501 (CD59) in phagocytosis by plasmatocytes, which function much like macrophages in vertebrates. By comparing whole transcriptome profiles in both supervised and unsupervised analyses, we showed thatDrosophila hemocytes are largely homologous to vertebrate myeloid cells, especially plasmatocytes to monocytes/macrophages and prohemocyte 1 (PH1) to hematopoietic stem cells. Furthermore, a small subset of prohemocytes with hematopoietic potential displayed homology with hematopoietic progenitor populations in vertebrates. Overall, our results provide a deeper understanding of molecular conservation i...
Source: PLoS Genetics - Category: Genetics & Stem Cells Authors: Source Type: research