Abstract
MOST of the T lymphocytes that populate the immune system develop in the thymus before its involution during late adolescence. Therefore, subsequent losses in T cells caused by HIV infection1, chemotherapy2 or age-related factors3 can greatly diminish immune responses to new antigenic challenge. Here we report the discovery of a thymus-independent pathway of T-cell development that may provide help for T-cell immunodeficiency. We show that expression of an oncostatin M transgene4 in the early T lineage stimulates a dramatic accumulation of immature and mature T cells in lymph nodes. A functional thymus is not required for this effect as reconstitution of nu/nu mice with transgenic bone marrow stimulated a 500-fold increase in Thy-l+ lymph node cells and restored immune responsiveness to allogeneic mouse melanoma cells. This lymphopoietic pathway is not unique to transgenic mice because administration of oncostatin M protein produced a similar response in non-trans-genic mice. These results identify a new pathway of T-cell development and a potential treatment for T-cell immunodeficiency with oncostatin M.
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Clegg, C., Rulffes, J., Wallace, P. et al. Regulation of an extrathymic T-cell development pathway by oncostatin M. Nature 384, 261–263 (1996). https://doi.org/10.1038/384261a0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/384261a0
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