Generation of a Litopenaeus vannamei hepatopancreas cell atlas from single nuclei transcriptomics

Crustacean aquaculture is one of the most important food sectors globally and projected to grow. It is a source of nutritious and economic animal protein in many low-income countries. Unlike model animals and other higher vertebrates that have been extensively studied, crustacean research lacks well-defined molecular tools and references. To date, there are still several gaps in the cellular and molecular composition of key immune organs, as well as physiological and molecular underpinnings of how crustaceans might respond to both environmental and pathogenic threats. As the global demand for sea food increases, and with an increase in climatic and pathogenic threats to the industry, curating our current knowledge about crustaceans, as well as generating new tools and resources to help minimise the impact of various diseases on the sustainability of the industry is of the utmost importance to increase the resilience of the farmed animal stocks. The aim of our study was to create a new cell atlas for Pacific whiteleg shrimp (Litopenaeus vannamei) hepatopancreas and to develop new methods for single nuclei RNA sequencing sample preparation in the species.