Unbiased classification of mosquito blood cells by single-cell genomics and high-content imaging

Mosquito blood cells are immune cells that help control infection by vector-borne pathogens. Despite their importance, little is known about mosquito blood cell biology beyond morphological and functional criteria used for their classification. Here, we combined the power of single-cell RNA sequenci...

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Published inProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS Vol. 115; no. 32; pp. E7568 - E7577
Main Authors Severo, Maiara S., Landry, Jonathan J. M., Lindquist, Randall L., Goosmann, Christian, Brinkmann, Volker, Collier, Paul, Hauser, Anja E., Benes, Vladimir, Henriksson, Johan, Teichmann, Sarah A., Levashina, Elena A.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published United States National Academy of Sciences 07.08.2018
SeriesPNAS Plus
Subjects
Aquatic insects
Biodiversity
Biological Sciences
Blood
Blood cells
Classification
Entomology
Flow cytometry
Functional plasticity
Gene expression
Gene sequencing
Genomics
Hybridization
Immune system
Malaria
Medical imaging
Mosquitoes
Plastic foam
PNAS Plus
Ribonucleic acid
RNA
Transcription
Vector-borne diseases
blood cells
single-cell sequencing
malaria
insect immunity
entomology
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Summary:Mosquito blood cells are immune cells that help control infection by vector-borne pathogens. Despite their importance, little is known about mosquito blood cell biology beyond morphological and functional criteria used for their classification. Here, we combined the power of single-cell RNA sequencing, high-content imaging flow cytometry, and single-molecule RNA hybridization to analyze a subset of blood cells of the malaria mosquito Anopheles gambiae. By demonstrating that blood cells express nearly half of the mosquito transcriptome, our dataset represents an unprecedented view into their transcriptional program. Analyses of differentially expressed genes identified transcriptional signatures of two cell types and provide insights into the current classification of these cells. We further demonstrate the active transfer of a cellular marker between blood cells that may confound their identification. We propose that cell-to-cell exchange may contribute to cellular diversity and functional plasticity seen across biological systems.
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Edited by Michael R. Strand, University of Georgia, Athens, GA, and approved June 26, 2018 (received for review February 22, 2018)
Author contributions: M.S.S. and E.A.L. designed research; M.S.S., J.J.M.L., R.L.L., C.G., V. Brinkmann, and P.C. performed research; M.S.S., J.J.M.L., R.L.L., V. Brinkmann, P.C., A.E.H., V. Benes, J.H., and S.A.T. contributed new reagents/analytic tools; M.S.S., J.J.M.L., R.L.L., C.G., V. Brinkmann, S.A.T., and E.A.L. analyzed data; and M.S.S. and E.A.L. wrote the paper.
ISSN:0027-8424
1091-6490
DOI:10.1073/pnas.1803062115