Long-term retention of mature NK1.1+ NKT cells in the thymus |
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Authors: | Berzins Stuart P McNab Finlay W Jones Claerwen M Smyth Mark J Godfrey Dale I |
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Affiliation: | Department of Microbiology and Immunology, University of Melbourne, Parkville, Australia. berzins@unimelb.edu.au |
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Abstract: | The NKT cell pool in the thymus contains immature (NK1.1(-)) and mature (NK1.1(+)) subsets that represent distinct linear stages of a linear developmental pathway. An unexplained paradox is why immature NK1.1(-) NKT cells are mainly exported to the periphery instead of the more mature and more abundant NK1.1(+) NKT cells. In this study we have determined that mature NK1.1(+) NKT cells are retained by the thymus to form an extremely long-lived resident population capable of rapid and prolonged production of IFN-gamma and IL-4. The retention of mature NKT cells provides an explanation for why the periphery is mainly seeded by immature NK1.1(-) cells despite mature NK1.1(+) NKT cells being more abundant in the thymus. This is the first study to identify a mature T cell subset retained within the thymus and is additional evidence of the distinct developmental pathways of mainstream T cells and NKT cells. |
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