Gene expression profile at single cell level of mitfa:GFP labelled zebrafish cells at 24hpf
Melanocytes of the skin have traditionally been viewed as a homogeneous population, however, recent findings suggest the existence of distinct cell states within the melanocyte population. To investigate this further, we employed the zebrafish as a valuable model system for studying melanocyte biology. The zebrafish offers advantages such as its transparent nature and the availability of transgenic lines that allow specific labeling of melanocytes. In our study, we utilized a transgenic zebrafish line, Tg(mifa:GFP), that expresses green fluorescent protein (GFP) under the control of a melanocyte-specific promoter, mitfa, labelling only those cells in which mitfa promoter is active. We then performed single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) analysis to explore the diversity of mitfa:GFP-positive cells. Overall design: Tg(mitfa:GFP) zebrafish embryos were raised till 24 hours post fertilization (hpf) and then the cells were isolated. The cells expressing mitfa:GFP were then sorted into low and high GFP population using a flow cytometer