Thymus organogenesis and development of the thymic stroma.
T-cell development occurs principally in the thymus. Here, immature progenitor cells are guided through the differentiation and selection steps required to generate a complex T-cell repertoire that is both self-tolerant and has propensity to bind self major histocompatibility complex. These processes depend on an array of functionally distinct epithelial cell types within the thymic stroma, which have a common developmental origin in the pharyngeal endoderm. Here, we describe the structural and phenotypic attributes of the thymic stroma, and review current cellular and molecular understanding of thymus organogenesis.
Nowell
Craig S
CS
Institute for Stem Cell Research, University of Edinburgh, UK.
Farley
Alison M
AM
Blackburn
C Clare
CC
D000818:Animals; D006801:Humans; D038081:Organogenesis / Q000276:immunology*; D013601:T-Lymphocytes / Q000166:cytology / Q000276:immunology; D013949:Thymus Extracts; D013950:Thymus Gland / Q000033:anatomy & histology / Q000166:cytology / Q000196:embryology* / Q000276:immunology
D013949:Thymus Extracts