Scollay R G, Butcher E C, Weissman I L
Eur J Immunol. 1980 Mar;10(3):210-8. doi: 10.1002/eji.1830100310.
We have used intrathymic injection of fluorescein isothiocyanate to label thymocytes in situ. The method gives random labeling of the thymocyte population and so can be used to quantitate the extent of migration of cells from the thymus to the periphery. Migrant cells can be visualized in frozen sections or cell suspensions of peripheral organs by their fluorescence. Our data show that in young adults, about 1% of thymocytes leave the thymus per day. Since the bulk of thymocytes turn over every 5 to 7 days, this indicates that the vast majority (95%) of thymocytes die within the thymus. Cells that do leave the thymus, go mainly to the T areas of lymph nodes, spleen and Peyer's patches. Migrants are extremely rare in bone marrow, gut and liver. Migration is about the same in neonates as in adults relative to the size of the thymus, but is considerably lower in older animals where it is only about 0.1% of thymocytes per day at the age of six months.
我们通过胸腺内注射异硫氰酸荧光素来原位标记胸腺细胞。该方法对胸腺细胞群体进行随机标记，因此可用于定量细胞从胸腺迁移至外周的程度。通过荧光可在周围器官的冰冻切片或细胞悬液中观察到迁移的细胞。我们的数据表明，在年轻成年人中，每天约有1%的胸腺细胞离开胸腺。由于大部分胸腺细胞每5至7天更新一次，这表明绝大多数（95%）的胸腺细胞在胸腺内死亡。离开胸腺的细胞主要去往淋巴结、脾脏和派尔集合淋巴结的T区。在骨髓、肠道和肝脏中迁移的细胞极为罕见。相对于胸腺大小，新生儿的迁移情况与成年人相似，但在老年动物中迁移率显著降低，在6个月大时每天仅有约0.1%的胸腺细胞迁移。
