Crustacean aquaculture is expected to be a major source of fishery commodities in the near future. Hemocytes are key players of the immune system in shrimps; however, their classification, maturation, and differentiation are still under debate. To date, only discrete and inconsistent information on the classification of shrimp hemocytes has been reported, showing that the morphological characteristics are not sufficient to resolve their actual roles. Our present study using single-cell RNA sequencing, revealed nine types of hemocytes of Marsupenaeus japonicus based on their transcriptional profiles. We identified markers of each subpopulation and the differentiation pathways involved in their maturation. We also discovered cell growth factors that might play crucial roles in hemocyte differentiation. Different immune roles among these subpopulations were suggested from the analysis of differentially expressed immune-related genes. These results provide a unified classification of shrimp hemocytes, which improves the understanding of its immune system.

中文翻译：

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单细胞RNA-seq分析揭示对虾虾血细胞亚群和细胞分化过程

在不久的将来，甲壳类养殖将成为渔业商品的主要来源。血细胞是虾免疫系统的关键因素。但是，它们的分类，成熟度和差异仍在争论中。迄今为止，仅报道了关于虾血细胞分类的离散且不一致的信息，这表明形态特征不足以解决其实际作用。我们目前使用单细胞RNA测序的研究基于其转录谱揭示了九种Marsupenaeus japonicus血细胞。我们确定了每个亚群的标志物及其成熟所涉及的分化途径。我们还发现了可能在血细胞分化中起关键作用的细胞生长因子。从差异表达的免疫相关基因的分析建议这些亚群之间的不同免疫作用。这些结果提供了对虾血细胞的统一分类，从而提高了对其免疫系统的了解。