title: Gamma/delta T cells in fetal, neonatal, and adult rat lymphoid organs.
abstract: In the present study, we have analyzed the appearance and maturation of gamma/delta T cells, recognized with a new mAb V65, in the central and peripheral lymphoid organs of fetal, neonatal, and adult Wistar rats. Cytofluorometrical analysis demonstrated the first V65+ gamma/delta T cells in the thymus of 16-17-day embryonic rats, although by immunohistology, they were identified only in 19-day rat embryos in both the cortico-medullary border and thymic medulla. Phenotypically, gamma/delta thymocytes from fetal and neonatal thymus expressed CD3, CD2, and CD5, but only 60-80% were CD8+ and approximately 40-50% expressed the alpha chain (p55) of the IL-2R. In the periphery, the immunohistological study identified for the first time gamma/delta T cells in the splenic white pulp and the gut of 21-day fetal rats, where they occurred within the epithelium as well as in the lamina propria. After birth, gamma/delta lymphocytes appeared in the skin, where they were present as dendritic epidermal T cells in increasing numbers during postnatal life. Whereas these gamma/delta T cells formed the predominant T-cell population in the rat skin, gamma/delta T cells in peripheral lymphoid organs, BALT, or the gut only represented a minor T-cell population. These results are discussed in comparison to gamma/delta T cells of other vertebrate species.
authors.affiliation: Institut für Virologie und Immunbiologie der Universität Würzburg.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Kühnlein
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Vicente
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Varas
authors.forename: T
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Hünig
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Zapata
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D000831:Animals, Newborn; D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D000945:Antigens, Differentiation, T-Lymphocyte / Q000378:metabolism; D002454:Cell Differentiation; D002469:Cell Separation; D005260:Female; D005333:Fetus / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D005865:Gestational Age; D007150:Immunohistochemistry; D008221:Lymphoid Tissue / Q000166:cytology* / Q000276:immunology*; D008297:Male; D011247:Pregnancy; D051381:Rats; D017208:Rats, Wistar; D016692:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell, gamma-delta / Q000378:metabolism*; D016176:T-Lymphocyte Subsets / Q000166:cytology* / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D000945:Antigens, Differentiation, T-Lymphocyte; D016692:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell, gamma-delta