Clonal analysis reveals a common progenitor for thymic cortical and medullary epithelium

被引:251
作者
Rossi, Simona W. [1 ]
Jenkinson, William E. [1 ]
Anderson, Graham [1 ]
Jenkinson, Eric J. [1 ]
机构
[1] Univ Birmingham, Sch Med, Inst Biomed Res, Div Immun & Infect,MRC,Ctr Immune Regulat, Birmingham B15 2TT, W Midlands, England
基金
英国医学研究理事会;
关键词
D O I
10.1038/nature04813
中图分类号
O [数理科学和化学]; P [天文学、地球科学]; Q [生物科学]; N [自然科学总论];
学科分类号
07 ; 0710 ; 09 ;
摘要
The thymus provides an essential environment for the development of T cells from haemopoietic progenitors. This environment is separated into cortical and medullary regions, each containing functionally distinct epithelial populations that are important at successive stages of T-cell development and selection(1,2). However, the developmental origin and lineage relationships between cortical and medullary epithelial cell types remain controversial(3). Here we describe a clonal assay to investigate the developmental potential of single, individually selected, thymic epithelial progenitors ( marked with enhanced yellow fluorescent protein) developing within the normal architecture of the thymus. Using this approach, we show that cortical and medullary epithelial cells share a common origin in bipotent precursors, providing definitive evidence that they have a single rather than dual germ layer origin during embryogenesis. Our findings resolve a long-standing issue in thymus development, and are important in relation to the development of cell-based strategies for thymus disorders and the possibility of restoring function of the atrophied adult thymus.
引用
收藏
页码:988 / 991
页数:4
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