title: Identification of transcripts expressed preferentially in hemocytes of Ciona intestinalis that can be used as molecular markers.
abstract: The immunity provided by ascidian hemocytes represents one prototype of innate immune function in vertebrates. However, there are currently no molecular markers of ascidian hemocytes. We accumulated a large number of ESTs of cDNAs derived from hemocytes of Ciona intestinalis, a cosmopolitan species of ascidian. By comparing these ESTs with those derived from other tissues and developmental stages of Ciona, we were able to extract 81 transcripts expressed abundantly and preferentially in hemocytes. Among them, the von Willebrand factor type A (vWA)-like and complement 6 (C6)-like transcripts were found to be expressed almost exclusively in hemocytes, based on RT-PCR analysis and whole mount in situ hybridization. We propose that vWA-like and C6-like can be used as molecular markers for Ciona hemocytes.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Development, Aging, and Cancer, Tohoku University, Seiryo-machi, 4-1, Aoba-ku, Sendai 980-8575, Japan.
authors.forename: Takeshi
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Wakoh
authors.forename: Makoto
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Ikeda
authors.forename: Ryuji
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Uchino
authors.forename: Kaoru
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Azumi
authors.forename: Masaru
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nonaka
authors.forename: Yuji
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Kohara
authors.forename: Hitoe
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Metoki
authors.forename: Yutaka
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Satou
authors.forename: Nori
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Satoh
authors.forename: Masanobu
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Satake
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001483:Base Sequence; D002938:Ciona intestinalis / Q000235:genetics* / Q000276:immunology*; D003183:Complement C6 / Q000235:genetics*; D018076:DNA, Complementary; D005819:Genetic Markers; D006434:Hemocytes; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D020133:Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction; D014158:Transcription, Genetic; D014841:von Willebrand Factor / Q000235:genetics*
chemical_list: D003183:Complement C6; D018076:DNA, Complementary; D005819:Genetic Markers; D014841:von Willebrand Factor