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Chemotactic responses of tunicate (Urochordata, Ascidiacea) hemocytes in vitro
D A Raftos1, D L Stillman, E L Cooper
1School of Biological Sciences, Macquarie University, North Ryde, New South Wales, 2109, Australia.
Journal of Invertebrate Pathology
|July 2, 1998
Abstract:
A number of molecules were found to alter the motility of tunicate hemocytes. Bacterial lipopolysaccharide (LPS) significantly enhanced cell mobility relative to non-stimulated controls. Responses to LPS were not directional and so represented chemokinesis. In contrast, checkerboard analyses indicated that two tunicate hemolymph proteins, tunIL1-alpha and -beta, stimulated truly directional chemotaxis by hemocytes. The data suggest that tunIL1 proteins may contribute to defense by altering the localization of immunocompetent cells.