Abstract
Self tolerance is under the strict control of T lymphocytes and is imposed during early T cell differentiation in the thymus [1–5]. Which particular cell types in the thymus induce self tolerance (negative selection) is controversial [5,6]. The prevailing view is that tolerance induction is largely a reflection of T cells encountering the contingent of bone-marrow-derived cells in the medulla [7–9]. These cells, especially dendritic cells [9], have a proven role in tolerance induction and are strategically positioned at the cortico-medul 1 ary junction. The role of thymic epithelial cells (TEC) in tolerance induction is less clear. In this paper we review our recent studies on the tolerogenicity of TEC in bone marrow (BM) and fetal liver (FL) chimeras. For allogeneic (mouse → mouse) chimeras, we present evidence that TEC are strongly tolerogenic for some T cells but only weakly tolerogenic for others. For xenogeneic (rat → mouse) chimeras, by contrast, TEC are almost nontolerogenic.
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Sprent, J., Kosaka, H., Surh, C.D. (1994). Tolerogenicity of Thymic Epithelial Cells: Studies with Allogeneic and Xenogeneic Chimeras. In: Touraine, J.L., Traeger, J., Bétuel, H., Dubernard, J.M., Revillard, J.P., Dupuy, C. (eds) Rejection and Tolerance. Transplantation and Clinical Immunology, vol 25. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-0802-7_12
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-011-0802-7_12
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