Expression of TL, H-2, and chimeric H-2/TL genes in transgenic mice: abnormal thymic differentiation and T-cell lymphomas in a TL transgenic strain.

To investigate the genetic regulation of TL expression, 12 transgenic mouse strains on a C3H (TL-nonexpressing) background have been derived: two Tg.Tlaa-3 strains with Tlaa-3 isolated from A-strain TL+ thymocytes, four Tg.T3b strains with T3b from a TL+ leukemia arising in a C57BL/6 (TL-) mouse, three Tg.Con.3 strains with an H-2Kb/T3b chimeric gene (construct 3,5'flanking region and exon 1 of H-2Kb and exons 2-6 of T3b), one Tg.Con.4 strain with a T3b/H-2Kb chimeric gene (construct 4, 5' flanking region and exon 1 of T3b and exons 2-8 of H-2Kb), and two Tg.H-2Kb strains with H-2Kb. Expression of the transgenes was determined by the presence of TL or H-2Kb products or transcripts. Both Tg.Tlaa-3 strains expressed high levels of TL antigen in thymus, indicating that (i) the 9.6-kilobase Tlaa-3 DNA fragment contains sufficient information for correct tissue-specific expression in thymocytes and (ii) TL- thymocytes of C3H provide conditions for the transcriptional activation of Tlaa-3. In contrast, neither the four Tg.T3b strains nor the Tg.Con.4 strain expressed transgenes, indicating that (i) T3b lacks elements necessary for TL expression in normal thymocytes and (ii) the corresponding endogenous TL genes of C3H mice also lack these elements. The pattern of TL expression in two of the three Tg.Con.3 strains was similar to that of H-2Kb expression, indicating that transcription of this H-2Kb/T3b chimeric gene was driven by the regulatory sequences of H-2Kb. The thymuses of mice derived from the Tg.Tlaa-3-1 strain were smaller than C3H thymuses, and the surface phenotype of Tg.Tlaa-3-1 thymocytes resembled thymocyte precursors (TL+L3T4-Lyt-2-Thy-1+H-2+). These mice developed a high incidence of lymphomas with the same thymocyte precursor phenotype. The study of TL transgenic strains should prove useful in defining the role of TL in normal and abnormal T-cell differentiation.