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Flow cytometric studies on the morphology and immunological functions of hemocytes in the Iwagaki oyster Crassostrea nippona

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Abstract

The Iwagaki oyster Crassostrea nippona may represent an aquaculture alternative to the Pacific oyster in Korea, Japan and China. In this study, morphology and immune-related functions of hemocytes of C. nippona were characterized using light microscopy and flow cytometry. Both light microscopy and flow cytometry indicated that C. nippona hemocytes are composed of three different types: granulocytes, hyalinocytes, and blast-like cells. Hyalinocytes were the most abundant and intermediate-sized cells, while granulocytes were the largest cells, containing many granules in the cytoplasm. Blast-like cells were characterized by a smaller size and very thin cytoplasm. Granulocytes were mainly engaged in phagocytosis and oxidative activities, although hyalinocytes also exhibited a certain level of immune-related activities. On the other hand, blast-like cells exhibited an absence of phagocytosis and extremely low oxidative capacity, suggesting that this subpopulation is not directly involved in cell-mediated immune response. The flow cytometry analyses carried out in the present study confirmed that granulocytes are the major hemocyte population involved in cellular defense of C. nippona, and allow for further studies on the impact of environmental stresses or pathogens on this alternative aquaculture species.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank the staff of the Shellfish Aquaculture and Research Laboratory at Jeju National University for their assistance in sampling and laboratory work. This study was supported by a research fund from the Basic Science Research Program through the National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF), funded by the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology (grant nos. 2010-0009352 and 2013R1A2A2A01006529). We appreciate their support.

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  1. School of Marine Biomedical Science (BK21 PLUS), Jeju National University, 102 Jejudaehakno, Jeju, 690-756, Korea

    Hyun-Ki Hong, Ludovic Donaghy & Kwang-Sik Choi

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  1. Hyun-Ki Hong
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  2. Ludovic Donaghy
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  3. Kwang-Sik Choi
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Correspondence to Kwang-Sik Choi.

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Hong, HK., Donaghy, L. & Choi, KS. Flow cytometric studies on the morphology and immunological functions of hemocytes in the Iwagaki oyster Crassostrea nippona . Fish Sci 80, 969–976 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12562-014-0777-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12562-014-0777-z

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