Essential and partially overlapping role of CD3gamma and CD3delta for development of alphabeta and gammadelta T lymphocytes.
CD3gamma and CD3delta are two highly related components of the T cell receptor (TCR)-CD3 complex which is essential for the assembly and signal transduction of the T cell receptor on mature T cells. In gene knockout mice deficient in either CD3delta or CD3gamma, early thymic development mediated by pre-TCR was either undisturbed or severely blocked, respectively, and small numbers of TCR-alphabeta+ T cells were detected in the periphery of both mice. gammadelta T cell development was either normal in CD3delta-/- mice or partially blocked in CD3gamma-/- mice. To examine the collective role of CD3gamma and CD3delta in the assembly and function of pre-TCR and in the development of gammadelta T cells, we generated a mouse strain with a disruption in both CD3gamma and CD3delta genes (CD3gammadelta-/-). In contrast to mice deficient in either CD3gamma or CD3delta chains, early thymic development mediated by pre-TCR is completely blocked, and TCR-alphabeta+ or TCR-gammadelta+ T cells were absent in the CD3gammadelta-/- mice. Taken together, these studies demonstrated that CD3gamma and CD3delta play an essential, yet partially overlapping, role in the development of both alphabeta and gammadelta T cell lineages.
Division of Immunology, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, USA.
B
B
Wang
N
N
Wang
M
M
Salio
A
A
Sharpe
D
D
Allen
J
J
She
C
C
Terhorst
D000818:Animals; D017252:CD3 Complex / Q000235:genetics / Q000378:metabolism / Q000502:physiology*; D019891:Leukopoiesis; D051379:Mice; D018345:Mice, Knockout; D016693:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell, alpha-beta / Q000378:metabolism*; D016692:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell, gamma-delta / Q000378:metabolism*; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000166:cytology* / Q000378:metabolism
D017252:CD3 Complex; D016693:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell, alpha-beta; D016692:Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell, gamma-delta