The earliest thymic progenitors in adults are restricted to T, NK, and dendritic cell lineage and have a potential to form more diverse TCRbeta chains than fetal progenitors

• Published in: The Journal of immunology (1950) Vol. 175; no. 9; pp. 5848 - 5856
• Main Authors: Lu, Min, Tayu, Risa, Ikawa, Tomokatsu, Masuda, Kyoko, Matsumoto, Isamu, Mugishima, Hideo, Kawamoto, Hiroshi, Katsura, Yoshimoto
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States 01.11.2005
• Subjects: Animals; B-Lymphocytes - cytology; Cell Differentiation; Cell Lineage; Dendritic Cells - cytology; Fetus - cytology; Gene Rearrangement, beta-Chain T-Cell Antigen Receptor; Hematopoietic Stem Cells - cytology; Killer Cells, Natural - cytology; Mice; Mice, Inbred C57BL; T-Lymphocytes - cytology; Thymus Gland - cytology; Thymus Gland - immunology

T cell progenitors in the adult thymus (AT) are not well characterized. In the present study, we show that the earliest progenitors in the murine AT are, like those in fetal thymus (FT), unable to generate B or myeloid cells, but still retain the ability to generate NK cells and dendritic cells. How...