A central role for thymic emigrants in peripheral T cell homeostasis
- Author(s)
- Berzins, SP; Godfrey, DI; Miller, JFAP; Boyd, RL;
- Details
- Publication Year 1999-08-17,Volume 96,Issue #17,Page 9787-9791
- Journal Title
- PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
- Publication Type
- Journal Article
- Abstract
- After initial seeding by thymic emigrants, homeostatic regulation of the T cell pool has been thought to occur entirely within the periphery. Here we report that the degree of thymic emigration directly affects the number and the CD4/CD8 ratio of peripheral T cells. We demonstrate that the increase in T cell pool size caused by the engraftment of 2, 6, or 9 thymic lobes correlates almost exactly with the number of emigrants exported from those grafts in the previous 3 weeks, regardless of how long the graft has been in place. The extent of the increase supports the concept of a 3-week period after thymic export in which emigrant T cells are exempt from peripheral T cell homeostasis. This apparent exclusion of recent thymic emigrants from the niche-based regulation of peripheral T cell numbers ensures repertoire turnover throughout adult life and provides the basis of a direct and previously unrecognized role for the thymus in the regulation of peripheral T cell homeostasis.
- Publisher
- NATL ACAD SCIENCES
- Keywords
- LYMPHOCYTES-T; LIFE-SPAN; MICE; MEMORY; SURVIVAL; NAIVE; POOL; EXPRESSION; INVOLUTION; SELECTION
- Publisher's Version
- https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.96.17.9787
- Terms of Use/Rights Notice
- Refer to copyright notice on published article.
Creation Date: 1999-08-17 12:00:00