title: [Phenotypic and functional analysis of thymic nurse cell (TNC)-lymphocytes].
abstract: Thymic nurse cells (TNC) are epithelial cells containing intact T-cells engulfed within membrane-lined vacuoles in their cytoplasm. Since thymic epithelial cells strongly express MHC class I and II antigens, these lymphoid-epithelial complexes have been considered to provide an optimal micro-environment for the process of self-recognition and/or clonal deactivation of thymocytes. The present experiments were designed to further analyze the phenotypical stage of differentiation and the functional properties of intra-TNC lymphocytes (TNC-L) at a single cell level using the chorionallantoic membrane (CAM) assay, which can only be performed in avian species and, thus, presents a unique possibility to circumvent technical problems for the functional study of TNC-L in mammals. In immunofluorescence analyses with monoclonal antibodies (mAb) to the chicken alpha/beta and gamma/delta T cell receptors (TCR) and the CD3, CD4, and CD8 equivalents, an enrichment was found of CD3+/CD4+/CD8-, CD3+/CD4-/CD8+, TCR alpha/beta + and TCR gamma/delta + cells inside TNC, as compared with extra-TNC thymocytes. Assessing micromanipulated, single chicken TNC in the CAM assay, we also demonstrated at a clonal level that TNC-L possess a strong graft-versus-host (GvH) reactivity in allogeneic combinations. This reaction showed morphological, phenotypical and functional characteristics of a classical graft-versus-host reaction (GvHR). The efficiency to induce a GvHR was higher for TNC-L than peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) or thymocytes from the same donor. Surprisingly, in syngeneic combinations TNC-L also react against self-MHC molecules with high frequency. The frequency in syngeneic combinations is, however, lower than in allogeneic combinations.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
authors.affiliation: Institut für Allgemeine und Experimentelle Pathologie, Medizinische Fakultät, Universität Innsbruck.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Penninger
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D015703:Antigens, CD / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D002645:Chickens; D005455:Fluorescent Antibody Technique; D006087:Graft vs Host Reaction / Q000276:immunology; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation / Q000276:immunology; D008285:Major Histocompatibility Complex / Q000276:immunology*; D008854:Microscopy, Electron; D010641:Phenotype; D011948:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell / Q000235:genetics / Q000276:immunology; D016176:T-Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000276:immunology; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000276:immunology* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D013950:Thymus Gland / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D015703:Antigens, CD; D011948:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell