Abstract
Hemocytes isolated from the larval hematopoietic organs of the silkworm were classified following staining with acridine orange and propidium iodide. Among the hemocytes isolated from the hematopoietic organs of whole fifth larval and wandering stages, most were prohemocytes (60%–70%) and oenocytoids (30%–40%). Granulocytes comprised only about 0.5%–1% at the wandering stage and were even rarer at other stages; no spherulocytes or plasmatocytes were found. Therefore, hemocyte differentiation inside larval hematopoietic organs is not as extensive as previously thought. Following 10–30 min in vitro culture of hemocytes isolated from larval hematopoietic organs, many young granulocytes and plasmatocytes appeared. Furthermore, during phagocytosis assays, prohemocytes were seen to adopt the morphology of plasmatocytes, containing fragments of phagocytosed cells. Our results underline the similarities between Drosophila and Bombyx hematopoiesis.
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Acknowledgements
The authors thank V. Hartenstein and J.H. Hillyer for helpful discussions and comments on the manuscript. We also thank two unknown reviewers for critically reading and reviewing this paper.
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Ling, E., Shirai, K., Kanekatsu, R. et al. Hemocyte differentiation in the hematopoietic organs of the silkworm, Bombyx mori: prohemocytes have the function of phagocytosis. Cell Tissue Res 320, 535–543 (2005). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00441-004-1038-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00441-004-1038-8