Differential effects of Flk-2/Flt-3 ligand and stem cell factor on murine thymic progenitor cells

Most primitive thymic progenitors, termed CD4(low) cells (CD25- CD44+ CD117+), retain the ability to generate multiple lymphoid lineages. T cell lineage commitment occurs as CD4(low) cells differentiate into pro-T cells (CD25+ CD44+ CD117+). We previously reported that the in vitro cytokine responses of CD4(low) and pro-T cells differ. While Flt-3 ligand (Flt-3L) has been shown to be involved in early bone marrow hemopoiesis, its role in thymopoiesis has not been thoroughly examined. Here, we report that Flt-3L has no significant effect on pro-T cells, either by in vitro proliferation or in fetal thymic organ culture repopulation. In contrast, CD4(low) cells cultured in vitro for 3 days in IL-3 + IL-6 + IL-7 + Flt-3L generated a twofold increase in cell number 21 days after transfer into fetal thymic organ culture that increased to sixfold by day 35 when compared with the corresponding CD4(low) cells cultured in IL-3 + IL-6 + IL-7 + stem cell factor. Additionally, the Flt-3L-cultured CD4(low) cells displayed fetal thymic organ culture repopulation kinetics that more closely approximated those seen with freshly isolated CD4(low) cells. These data suggest that Flt-3L serves as a self-renewal or proliferation/expansion signal for CD4(low) cells, while the effect of stem cell factor is more likely to transduce a differentiation signal, resulting in more rapid repopulation at the expense of cell expansion.     

Estrogen blocks early T cell development in the thymus

PROBLEM: Pregnancy and estrogen are known to suppress B lymphopoiesis as well as lead to thymic involution in the mouse. Additionally, estrogen deficiency by oophorectomy reportedly causes a selective increase in the B220+ B cells in the murine bone marrow. The purpose of this study was to determine if estrogens played a regulatory role in T cell development. METHODS: The first experimental group consisted of 5-6-week-old Balb/c mice that received subcutaneous pellets of placebo, estriol, estradiol, or progesterone. The thymus glands were examined 2-4 weeks after treatment. The second group consisted of 6-week-old Balb/c mice who underwent either bilateral oophorectomy or a sham procedure. Two weeks after the surgery, extensive phenotypic characterization of the thymus and spleen cells was performed by flow cytometry using monoclonal antibodies to surface markers of T cell subsets. RESULTS: Estrogen treatment causes a dramatic reduction of thymic size and cellularity. All defined T cell subsets of CD4 and CD8 were reduced, with a disproportionate loss of CD4+CD8+ double positive cells. Examination of the triple negative (CD3-CD4-CD8-) subset revealed a striking loss of TN developmental progression of the early precursor cells. Based on the expression of CD44 (pgp-1) and CD25 (IL-2R alpha) markers, the TN thymic compartment was composed almost entirely of the earliest population (CD44+, CD25-), with the remaining maturational stages (CD44+, CD25+; CD44-, CD25+; CD44-, CD25-) depleted. In contrast, all T cell developmental stages in the thymus were found to be in normal proportions in the oophorectomized mice, with no differences in the splenic T and B cell subsets. CONCLUSIONS: The study demonstrates that estrogen but not progesterone blocks T cell development in the thymus. However, contrary to our expectation, estrogen deprivation by oophorectomy does not enhance T cell development.     

Fibroblast dependency during early thymocyte development maps to the CD25+ CD44+ stage and involves interactions with fibroblast matrix molecules

We have investigated the role of specific components of the thymic stroma during development of CD4-8-T cell precursors by separating and reaggregating precursor subsets with individual or combinations of stromal cells. We show that while the development of CD25+ 44+ precursors is dependent upon a combination of major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class II+ thymic epithelial cells and fibroblasts, their direct descendants, CD25+ 44- precursors, develop to the CD4+ 8+ stage in the presence of MHC class II+ thymic epithelial cells alone. Thus, CD25+ 44+ precursors are the last developmental stage to be dependent upon fibroblast support. In addition, while metabolically inactive, 1-ethyl-3-(3'-dimethylaminopropyl) carbodiimide (ECDI)-treated fibroblasts retain the ability to promote T cell development, prior treatment with hyaluronidase abrogates this effect, suggesting that fibroblast-associated extracellular matrix components are the key elements involved. In support of this, we show that fibroblasts are located in cortical regions of the thymus where T cell precursors are known to reside, and that these fibroblasts are associated with an extensive extracellular matrix not found on thymic epithelial cells. Finally, antibodies to alpha 4 integrin and CD44 interfere with the efficiency with which CD4+ 8+ cells are generated from CD25+ 44+ precursors in reaggregate cultures and also reduce the binding of the latter to 3T3 fibroblasts, suggesting these molecules play a role in bringing T cell precursors into contact with fibroblast-associated extracellular matrix.     

Development of a method of thymocyte differentiation of bone marrow-enriched CD34+CD38- cells in postnatal allogeneic cultured thymic epithelia to evaluate immunodeficiency disorders

An in vitro model of CD34+CD38- stem cell (SC) differentiation in postnatal cultured thymic epithelia fragment (CTEF) cocultures is described. Sequential phenotypic analysis of the progeny of the SC-CTEF demonstrated predominantly thymocytes and minor populations of promyelocytes, monocytes and natural killer cells. Triple-positive CD3+CD4+CD8+, double-positive CD4+CD8+, and mature single-positive CD4+ and CD8+ T cells, which were TCR alpha beta+, were identified indicating normal thymocyte maturation. In kinetic studies, mature single-positive CD4+ T cells increased from 29% of total cells at one week to 54% at four weeks of coculture. These findings demonstrate that coculture of bone marrow-derived SC and allogeneic cultured thymic epithelia in vitro results in continuous normal predominantly thymocyte differentiation. The SC-CTEF cocultures were then infected with two different strains of human immunodeficiency virus. CD4+ thymocytes were markedly decreased. However, inhibition of early thymocyte maturation steps was also suggested by the presence of increased triple-negative and CD44+CD25-CD3-thymocytes and decreased CD44+CD25+ thymocytes. This model system of thymocyte maturation will be useful in the evaluation of primary T cell immunodeficiency disorders, gene therapy of SC and pharmacological augmentation of thymic function.     

Distinct roles of the interleukin-7 receptor alpha chain in fetal and adult thymocyte development revealed by analysis of interleukin-7 receptor alpha-deficient mice

Mouse mutants lacking expression of the IL-7 receptor (IL-7R) alpha chain are defective in thymopoiesis. The adult thymus has multiple defects, including reduced cell numbers and proportions of the more mature thymocyte subsets, a complete absence of CD25+ cells and a reduced level of RAG1 and RAG2 expression. We show here that, in contrast to the profound developmental arrest observed in the adult thymus, fetal thymocytes from IL-7Ralpha-/- mice have normal proportions of all of the major thymocyte subpopulations, including CD25+ thymocytes and the most mature single-positive subsets. Moreover, normal levels of RAG1 and RAG2 were observed. Total thymocyte numbers, however, remained reduced. These data suggest that the IL-7Ralpha chain is a key regulator of both survival and proliferation during thymocyte development but that it is not essential for the production of T cells during fetal thymopoiesis.     

The expression of CD4 by T cell precursors resident in both the thymus and the bone marrow

A very small fraction of thymocytes has recently been identified that expresses low levels of CD4 in the absence of CD8, CD3, or a TCR. These CD4lo thymocytes appear to be the precursors of the early CD4-CD8-CD3- thymic subset and contain most of the T cell progenitor activity found within the thymus. Here, we examined adult bone marrow for the presence of a similar population of cells and found that 0.5% to 3.5% of C58/J bone marrow cells express low, but detectable levels of CD4 (CD4lo) at the cell surface in the absence of CD3. These CD4lo bone marrow cells display pre-T cell activity, in that they are able to repopulate the thymus of irradiated recipient mice after intrathymic transfer. Moreover, we found that most of pre-T cell activity found in the bone marrow is contained within the CD4lo expressing subset of marrow cells. Although the CD4lo cells found in both the thymus and bone marrow display pre-T cell activity, the CD4lo cells from these two sites showed pronounced differences with respect to their ability to respond to specific cytokine stimulation in vitro. Bone marrow-resident CD4lo cells proliferated in response to both IL-3 and mast cell growth factor in vitro, whereas CD4lo cells isolated from the thymus did not. Furthermore, CD4lo bone marrow cells, grown in media containing IL-3 and mast cell growth factor, retained their pre-T cell activity, indicating that CD4lo cells with pre-T cell capabilities were among the IL-3 and mast cell growth factor-responsive cells. These data suggest that although pre-T cells in bone marrow share the CD4lo phenotype with their intrathymic counterparts, they may be fundamentally different with respect to the environmental factors that control their growth.     

The GTPase Rho has a critical regulatory role in thymus development

The present study employs a genetic approach to explore the role of Rho GTPases in murine thymic development. Inactivation of Rho function in the thymus was achieved by thymic targeting of a transgene encoding C3 transferase from Clostridium botulinum which selectively ADP-ribosylates Rho within its effector domain and thereby abolishes its biological function. Thymi lacking functional Rho isolated from C3 transgenic mice were strikingly smaller and showed a marked (90%) decrease in cellularity compared with their normal litter mates. We also observed a similar decrease in levels of peripheral T cells in C3 transgenic mice. Analysis of the maturation status of thymocytes indicated that differentiation of progenitor cells to mature T cells can occur in the absence of Rho function, and both positive and negative selection of T cells appear to be intact. However, transgenic mice that lack Rho function in the thymus show maturational, proliferative and cell survival defects during T-cell development that severely impair the generation of normal numbers of thymocytes and mature peripheral T cells. The present study thus identifies a role for Rho-dependent signalling pathways in thymocyte development. The data show that the function of Rho GTPases is critical for the proliferative expansion of thymocytes. This defines a selective role for the GTPase Rho in early thymic development as a critical integrator of proliferation and cell survival signals.     

Isolation, cultivation and phenotypic characterization of rat thymic dendritic cells

Rat thymic dendritic cells (TDC) were isolated from thymic cell suspension by Nycodenz gradients of different densities and osmolarities. After cultivation of these cells for 3 days in the conditioned medium (TE-R 2.5 + HT supernatant) prepared by cocultivation of a medullary thymic epithelial cell line (TE-R 2.5) and hydrocortisone resistant thymocytes, the purity (75-85%) and survival of TDC significantly increased. The supernatant contained moderate activities of IL-1 and IL-6, low levels of TNF-alpha and IL-2 and factor(s) that strongly stimulated the proliferation of a mouse macrophage cell line RAW 264.7. TDC survival in culture was significantly increased by GM-CSF and decreased by IL-6 and IFN-gamma. The phenotype of TDC was studied by flow cytometry using a panel of monoclonal antibodies (mAb) to rat cell surface markers. It was found that almost all freshly isolated TDC expressed major histocompatibility complex (MHC) class I and class II molecules as well as CD45. Most TDC were LFA-1 (CD11a)+, CD18+, ICAM-1 (CD54)+ and CD53 (OX- 44)+, but only certain subsets expressed CD11b and thymocyte markers Thy1, CD2, CD4 and CD8. Upregulation in the expression of almost all the markers was observed after cultivation of TDC. In addition, cultivated, but not freshly isolated TDC expressed CD25 (IL-2R alpha) and CD45RC (OX-22) molecules. Cultivated TDC had strong accessory function in autologous thymocyte proliferation.     

Proliferation kinetics associated with T cell receptor-beta chain selection of fetal murine thymocytes

After productive rearrangement of a TCR beta chain gene, CD4-8- double negative (DN) thymocytes express TCR beta polypeptide chains on the cell surface together with pre-T alpha and the CD3 complex forming the pre-TCR. Signals transmitted through the pre-TCR select TCR beta + DN thymocytes for further maturation to the CD4+8+ double positive stage, whereas DN cells that fail to generate a productive TCR beta gene rearrangement do not continue in development. This process is termed TCR beta chain selection. Although it is likely that differences between proliferation dynamics of TCR beta + and TCR beta-cells may play a role, the exact mechanisms of TCR beta chain selection have not been elucidated. We therefore studied the proliferation dynamics of TCR beta + and TCR beta-thymocytes during fetal development, i.e., when TCR beta chain selection takes place for the first time. We analyzed in situ accumulation of TCR beta + thymocytes by confocal microscopy, and determined cell cycle and division parameters of TCR beta + and TCR beta-populations by flow cytometry. About 600 TCR beta + cells/thymic lobe are generated by independent induction events between days of gestation (dg) 13.5, and 15.5. As of dg 14.5, most TCR beta + cells have entered S/G2 phase of cell cycle, followed by seven to eight rapid cell divisions in fetal thymic organ culture, suggesting a corresponding burst of nine cell divisions within 4 d in vivo. By dg 18.5, the division rate of TCR beta + cells has slowed down to less than 1/d. About three quarters of TCR beta-cells divide at a slow rate of 1/d on dg 14.5, the proportion of nondividing cells increasing to 50% within the following four d. From dg 16.5 onwards, TCR beta-cells, but not TCR beta + cells, contain a significant proportion of apoptotic cells. The results suggest that failure to become selected results in shutdown of proliferation and eventual programmed cell death of fetal TCR beta-cells. Positive selection of fetal TCR beta + cells is achieved by an increased rate of cell divisions lasting for approximately 4 d.     

Flt3 ligand plus IL-7 supports the expansion of murine thymic B cell progenitors that can mature intrathymically

Flt3 ligand (flt3L) has potent effects on hemopoietic progenitors, dendritic cells, and B lymphopoiesis. We have investigated the effects of flt3L on intrathymic precursors. The addition of flt3L + IL-7 to lobe submersion cultures of murine fetal thymic lobes resulted in the expansion of an immature population of Thy-1(low), CD44(high), HSA(high) cells. This population contained cells with precursor activity, as determined by their capacity to repopulate deoxyguanosine-treated fetal thymic lobes. Upon reentry to the thymic lobe, flt3L + IL-7-cultured Thy-1(low), CD44(high), HSA(high) cells underwent expansion and differentiation into B cells. Two weeks after fetal thymic organ culture following thymic lobe reconstitution, intrathymic cells were Thy-1-, B220+, and a subset was sIgM+. The intrathymic B cells shared features of adult thymic B cells, including CD5 expression and proliferative responses to IL-4 + IL-5 + CD40 ligand, but not to LPS or soluble anti-IgM. Ig production was noted upon stimulation with IL-4 + IL-5 + LPS and IL-4 + IL-5 + CD40 ligand. In conclusion, we have demonstrated that flt3L + IL-7 supports the expansion of a subset of progenitors present in the fetal thymus. The cultured progenitors can repopulate a fetal thymic lobe and develop into mature functional B cells, demonstrating that the fetal thymus is able to support B cell as well as T cell development.     

Cardiovascular and abdominal motor responses evoked by intravenous neurotensin in guinea pigs

Developing T cells in the thymus are subject to a screening process, through interactions with thymic stromal cells, from which T cells with appropriate T-cell receptors are selected. The recent generation of T-cell receptor transgenic mice and mice homozygous for disrupted T-cell receptor genes have now supplied tools that improve the prospect for a better understanding of the molecular mechanisms of this thymic selection process. In addition these model systems appear to indicate a role for a, not yet fully characterized, pre-T cell receptor complex in survival and further differentiation of pre-T cells.     

Critical involvement of Tcf-1 in expansion of thymocytes

T cell maturation in Tcf-1(-/-) mice deteriorates progressively and halts completely around 6 mo of age. During fetal development thymocyte subpopulations seem normal, although total cell numbers are lower. By 4 to 6 wk of age, obvious blockades in the differentiation of CD4- 8- thymocytes are observed at two distinct stages (CD44+ 25+ and CD44- 25-), both of which are normally characterized by extensive proliferation. This lack of thymocyte expansion and/or differentiation was also observed when Tcf-1(-/-) progenitor cells from the aorta-gonad-mesonephros region (embryonic day 11.5), fetal liver (embryonic day 12.5/14.5), and fetal bone marrow (embryonic day 18.5) were allowed to differentiate in normal thymic lobes (fetal thymic organ cultures) or were injected intrathymically into normal recipients. Despite these apparent defects in thymocyte differentiation and expansion, adult Tcf-1(-/-) mice are immunocompetent, as they generate virus neutralizing Abs at normal titers. Furthermore, their peripheral T cells have an activated phenotype (increased CD44 and decreased CD62L expression) and proliferate normally in response to Ag or mitogen, suggesting that these cells may have arisen from the early wave of development during embryogenesis and are either long lived or have subsequently been maintained by peripheral expansion. As Tcf-1 is a critical component in the Wnt/beta-catenin signaling pathway, these data suggest that Wnt-like factors play a role in the expansion of double-negative thymocytes.     

Influence of detergents on the function of cloned potassium channels

The human thymus is a lymphoepithelial organ in which T cells develop during fetal life. After maturation and selection in the fetal thymic microenvironment, T cells emigrate to peripheral lymphoid tissues such as the spleen, gut, and lymph nodes, and establish the peripheral T cell repertoire. Although the thymus has enormous regenerative capacity during fetal development, the regenerative capacity of the human postnatal thymus decreases over time. With the advent of intensive chemotherapy regimens for a variety of cancer syndromes, and the discovery that infection with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) leads to severe loss of CD4+ T cells, has come the need to understand the role of the human thymus in reconstitution of the immune system in adults. During a recent study of the thymus in HIV infection, we observed many CD8+ T cells in AIDS thymuses that had markers consistent with those of mature effector cytotoxic T cells usually found in peripheral immune tissues, and noted these CD8+ effector T cells were predominately located in a thymic zone termed the thymic perivascular space. This article reviews our own work on the thymus in HIV-1 infection, and discusses the work of others that, taken together, suggest that the thymus contains peripheral immune cell components not only in the setting of HIV infection, but also in myasthenia gravis, as well as throughout normal life during the process of thymus involution. Thus, the human thymus can be thought of as a chimeric organ comprised of both central and peripheral lymphoid tissues. These observations have led us to postulate that the thymic epithelial atrophy and decrease in thymopoiesis that occurs in myasthenia gravis, HIV-1 infection, and thymic involution may in part derive from cytokines or other factors produced by peripheral immune cells within the thymic perivascular space.     

Characterization of CD34+ thymic stromal cells located in the subcapsular cortex of the human thymus

In this paper we report that suspensions of human fetal thymocytes contain cells that express high levels of CD34 and Thy-1. These cells were characterized with regard to location within the thymus, phenotype, and function. Confocal laser scan analysis of frozen sections of fetal thymus with anti-CD34 and Thy-1 antibodies revealed that the double-labeled cells were located in the pericortical area. In addition, it was found that the CD34+Thy-1+ cells lacked CD45 and CD50, indicating that these cells are not of hematopoietic origin; this was confirmed by the finding that these cells could be cultured as adherent cells in a medium with cholera toxin and dexamethasone, but failed to grow in mixtures of hematopoietic growth factors. Further analysis indicated that most cultured CD34+Thy-1+ cells expressed cytokeratin (CK) 14 but lacked CK 13, suggesting that these cells are immature epithelial cells. Cultured CD34+Thy-1+ cells were able to induce differentiation of CD1-CD34+CD3-CD4-CD8- thymic precursors into CD4+CD8+ cells in a reaggregate culture in the absence of exogenous cytokines. The CD4+CD8+ cells that developed in these cultures did not express CD3, indicating that CD34+Thy-1+ thymic stromal cells are not capable of completing full T cell differentiation of thymic hematopoietic progenitor cells.     

Styryl-pyrones from Goniothalamus arvensis

CD3gamma and CD3delta are two highly related components of the T cell receptor (TCR)-CD3 complex which is essential for the assembly and signal transduction of the T cell receptor on mature T cells. In gene knockout mice deficient in either CD3delta or CD3gamma, early thymic development mediated by pre-TCR was either undisturbed or severely blocked, respectively, and small numbers of TCR-alphabeta+ T cells were detected in the periphery of both mice. gammadelta T cell development was either normal in CD3delta-/- mice or partially blocked in CD3gamma-/- mice. To examine the collective role of CD3gamma and CD3delta in the assembly and function of pre-TCR and in the development of gammadelta T cells, we generated a mouse strain with a disruption in both CD3gamma and CD3delta genes (CD3gammadelta-/-). In contrast to mice deficient in either CD3gamma or CD3delta chains, early thymic development mediated by pre-TCR is completely blocked, and TCR-alphabeta+ or TCR-gammadelta+ T cells were absent in the CD3gammadelta-/- mice. Taken together, these studies demonstrated that CD3gamma and CD3delta play an essential, yet partially overlapping, role in the development of both alphabeta and gammadelta T cell lineages.     

Upregulated expression of fibronectin receptors underlines the adhesive capability of thymocytes to thymic epithelial cells during the early stages of differentiation: lessons from sublethally irradiated mice

A 250-cGy whole-body gamma-radiation dose was used to induce thymus regression in mice, and to study the expression and function of extracellular matrix (ECM) receptors in distinct thymocyte subsets emerging during repopulation of the organ. The onset of regeneration was detected from day 2 to 3 postirradiation (P-Ir), when a remarkable increase in the absolute counts of CD3(-)CD25(hi)CD44(+) and CD3(-)CD25(in/hi)CD44(-) cells occurred. Enhanced expression of L-selectin, alpha4, and alpha5 integrin chains (L-selhi alpha4(hi) alpha5(hi)) was also exhibited by these cells. This pattern of expression was maintained until the CD4(+)CD8(+) (DP) young stage was achieved. Afterward, there was a general downregulation of these ECM receptors in DP as well as in CD4(+) or CD8(+) single positive (SP) thymocytes (L-selin alpha4(in) alpha5(in)). In some recently generated SP cells, alpha4 expression was downregulated before the alpha5 chain, and L-selectin was upregulated in half of more mature cells. The expression of the alpha6 integrin chain was downregulated only in maturing CD4(+) cells. Importantly, the increased expression of L-selectin and alpha4 and alpha5 chains in thymocytes was strongly correlated with their adhesiveness to thymic epithelial cells (TEC) in vitro. Blocking experiments with monoclonal antibody or peptides showed the following: (1) that the LDV rather than the REDV cell attachment motif in the IIIC segment of fibronectin is targeted by the alpha4 integrin during thymocyte/TEC adhesion; (2) that the RGD motif of the 120-kD fragment of fibronectin, a target for alpha5 integrin, has a secondary role in this adhesion; and (3) that the YIGSR cell attachment motif of the beta1 chain of laminin/merosin recognized by a nonintegrin receptor is not used for thymocyte adherence. In conclusion, our results show that an upregulated set of receptors endows CD25(+) precursors and cells up to the young DP stage with a high capability of interacting with thymic ECM components.