title: Lifespans of naive, memory and effector lymphocytes.
abstract: Typical T and B lymphocytes in the secondary lymphoid organs are long-lived cells that are selected from a large pool of short-lived precursor cells in the primary lymphoid organs. The bulk of mature T and B cells are immunologically naive and remain in interphase for prolonged periods. Contact with specific antigen causes these naive cells to proliferate rapidly and differentiate into a mixture of short-lived effector cells and long-lived memory cells. Memory cells have a rapid turnover, and the survival of these cells appears to require persistent contact with antigen.
authors.affiliation: Department of Immunology, Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, California 92037.
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Sprent
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D017209:Apoptosis; D001853:Bone Marrow / Q000276:immunology; D001854:Bone Marrow Cells; D002465:Cell Movement; D016922:Cellular Senescence; D006801:Humans; D007114:Immunization; D007156:Immunologic Memory; D007399:Interphase; D008213:Lymphocyte Activation; D016131:Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000166:cytology* / Q000276:immunology; D008221:Lymphoid Tissue / Q000166:cytology / Q000254:growth & development; D051379:Mice; D051381:Rats; D013950:Thymus Gland / Q000166:cytology / Q000254:growth & development / Q000276:immunology