Expression patterns of alpha-synuclein in human hematopoietic cells and inDrosophila at different developmental stages

alpha-Synuclein, a presynaptic protein of the central nervous system, has b een implicated in the synaptic events such as neuronal plasticity during de velopment and learning, and neuronal degeneration under pathological condit ions. As an effort to understand the biological function of alpha-synuclein , we examined the expression patterns of alpha-synuclein in various human h ematopoietic cells, and in Drosophila at different developmental stages. Th e alpha-synuclein was ubiquitously expressed in all the tested hematopoieti c cells including T cells, B cells, NK cells, and monocytes, as well as in the lymphoma cell lines, Jurkat and K562, A potential alpha-synuclein homol ogue was also expressed in Drosophila, and its expression appeared to be te mporally and spatially regulated during development. Our data suggest that alpha-synuclein may function in invertebrates as well as in vertebrates and its function may not be restricted to the neuron.