Single-cell transcriptome sequencing reveals the effect of Wolbachia on Drosophila testis

The intracellular symbiotic bacterium Wolbachia is found mainly in the reproductive tissues of arthropod and nematode, where it can manipulate the host reproductive system in several ways to facilitate its own matrilineal transmission. Several previous studies have revealed the effects of Wolbachia on host testis from different perspectives, leading to sperm abnormalities that may ultimately result in cytoplasmic incompatibility (CI). However, due to the complexity of spermatogenesis and the diversity of cell types in the testis, conventional histological techniques cannot reveal the effects of Wolbachia on different cells of the testis tissue in a more refined way. Here, we perform single-cell transcriptome sequencing of adult Drosophila testis infected and uninfected with Wolbachia, our result shown Wolbachia affects the proportion of multiple germ cells in Drosophila testis and also has an effect on the proportion of somatic cells, although less significantly than the former. The results of gene expression pattern showed that Wolbachia had the greatest effect on early spermatogenesis such as GSC Early spermatogonia cells, significantly affecting the expression of genes related to reproduction in early spermatogenesis, including a few genes such as blanks, heph, and Psi that may play a central role in spermatogenesis. In addition, Wolbachia also significantly affected the gene expression of somatic cells in the testis, such as Hub cell and Cyst cell.