Elucidation of the conserved role of OCIA domain proteins in regulation of drosophila and mouse blood cell homeostasis

Abstract

The average human generates over a trillion mature blood cells each day, through a process called hematopoiesis. The bone marrow is the primary site of adult hematopoiesis with minor contributions from the spleen and liver. A functional circulatory system is essential in all multicellular animals. While most invertebrates have an open circulatory system with hemolymph and blood cells directly in contact with tissues, vertebrates have a closed circulatory system where blood flows through blood vessels. Cellular and functional diversity are greatly increased in more evolved animal classes. However, a common requirement is the presence of a specialized stem or progenitor cell population that can give rise to the entire blood system in response to appropriate cues. The function and dynamics of these stem and progenitor populations are tightly regulated by various cell-intrinsic and -extrinsic signals. Imbalance in or deregulation of these signals can potentially result in a diverse set of life-threatening hematological disorders and malignancies. Several molecular regulators of vertebrate hematopoiesis arose by conservation or gene duplication from invertebrate pathways. Expectedly, studies on model organisms have given deep insight into development and regulation of the human blood system. Hence, we aimed to identify and characterize additional conserved regulators of hematopoiesis as it may provide insights into understanding and treating blood cell disorders.