Thymic and extrathymic T cell development
Leclercq, G.; Plum, J.
Leukemia 10(12): 1853-1859
1996
ISSN/ISBN: 0887-6924 PMID: 8946921 Document Number: 468595
The majority of T cells located in peripheral blood, spleen and lymph nodes are dependent on the thymus for proper differentiation and function. Only a minority of T lymphocytes located in these lymphoid organs is thymic-independent. In contrast, a large number of thymus-independent T cells is present in the gut epithelium. This review deals with phenotypic and functional characteristics of T cell development, summarizes the knowledge on the cytokine requirement in this process and describes positive and negative selection. The differences between thymic-dependent and thymic-independent T cells are emphasized, including selection processes, CD4-CD8 expression and the composition of the CD3 complex.