The thymic repertoire of neuroendocrine self-antigens: Physiological implications in T-cell life and death

During phylogeny and ontogeny, the thymus appears as a crucial meeting point between the neuroendocrine and immune systems; through cryptocrine intercellular communication, thymic neuroendocrine-related precursors can influence the early steps of the immune response, while T-cell precursors are educated to recognize the principal neuroendocrine families. Here we summarize the observations that support the dual role of the thymic repertoire of neuroendocrine-related polypeptide precursors in T-cell differentiation.