Vicari A, de Moraes M do C, Gombert J M, Dy M, Penit C, Papiernik M, Herbelin A
INSERM U345, Institut Necker, Paris, France.
J Exp Med. 1994 Aug 1;180(2):653-61. doi: 10.1084/jem.180.2.653.
We analyzed the phenotype and V beta-T cell receptor (TCR) repertoire, together with interleukin 7 receptor (IL-7R) expression in unfractionated thymocytes stimulated in vitro with IL-7. This culture system results in a specific proliferation of mature thymocytes belonging to the CD3+CD4-, CD4+8-, and CD4-8+ subsets. IL-7 induced a preferential expansion of V beta 8.2+CD4-8- and V beta 8.2+CD4-8- thymocytes. This phenomenon is not observed in beta 2-microglobulin-deficient mice, showing that a fraction of CD4+8- thymocytes, enriched in V beta 8.2+ cells, is selected by class I molecules in normal mice, as are a large proportion of CD4-8- alpha beta TCR+ thymocytes. Our findings also establish that IL-7 plays a major role in the expansion of rare thymocyte subsets, which could exert important functions in inflammatory and immune responses.
我们分析了经白细胞介素7(IL-7)体外刺激的未分级胸腺细胞的表型、Vβ-T细胞受体(TCR)库,以及白细胞介素7受体(IL-7R)的表达情况。该培养系统导致属于CD3+CD4-、CD4+8-和CD4-8+亚群的成熟胸腺细胞特异性增殖。IL-7诱导Vβ8.2+CD4-8-和Vβ8.2+CD4-8-胸腺细胞优先扩增。在β2-微球蛋白缺陷小鼠中未观察到这种现象,这表明在正常小鼠中,富含Vβ8.2+细胞的一部分CD4+8-胸腺细胞是由I类分子选择的,很大比例的CD4-8-αβTCR+胸腺细胞也是如此。我们的研究结果还证实,IL-7在罕见胸腺细胞亚群的扩增中起主要作用,这些亚群可能在炎症和免疫反应中发挥重要功能。