|
|
||||||||



*
Division of Viral Products, Center for Biologics Evaluation and Research, Food and Drug Administration, and
Dermatology Branch, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892; and
Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, NY 10461
Stromal-derived factor-1 (SDF-1), the only known ligand for the chemokine receptor CXCR4, is broadly expressed in cells of both the immune and central nervous systems, and it can induce the migration of resting leukocytes and hemopoietic progenitors. SDF-1 mRNA was previously detected in human thymus-derived stromal cells, but its role in thymopoiesis was unknown. Here we show that SDF-1 is expressed in medullar epithelial cells forming Hassalls corpuscles (HC). In search of the cell type that may be attracted by SDF-1+ cells in the medulla, we determined that dendritic cells (DC) could be found in situ in close proximity to SDF-1+ epithelial cells in HC. In HIV-1-infected SCID-hu thymuses, DC contained apoptotic cells and were located within enlarged HC. It was further demonstrated that uptake of apoptotic thymocytes by immature DC induced an increase in CXCR4 expression and SDF-1-mediated chemotaxis. Our data suggest a role for SDF-1 in the elimination of apoptotic thymocytes.
This article has been cited by other articles:
![]() |
I. Zubkova, H. Mostowski, and M. Zaitseva Up-Regulation of IL-7, Stromal-Derived Factor-1{alpha}, Thymus-Expressed Chemokine, and Secondary Lymphoid Tissue Chemokine Gene Expression in the Stromal Cells in Response to Thymocyte Depletion: Implication for Thymus Reconstitution J. Immunol., August 15, 2005; 175(4): 2321 - 2330. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
E. Dalakas, P. N. Newsome, D. J. Harrison, and J. N. Plevris Hematopoietic stem cell trafficking in liver injury FASEB J, August 1, 2005; 19(10): 1225 - 1231. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
![]() |
A. A. Chentoufi, M. Palumbo, and C. Polychronakos Proinsulin Expression by Hassall's Corpuscles in the Mouse Thymus Diabetes, February 1, 2004; 53(2): 354 - 359. [Abstract] [Full Text] |
||||
![]() |
S. Efroni, D. Harel, and I. R. Cohen Toward Rigorous Comprehension of Biological Complexity: Modeling, Execution, and Visualization of Thymic T-Cell Maturation Genome Res., November 1, 2003; 13(11): 2485 - 2497. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF] |
||||
| HOME | HELP | FEEDBACK | SUBSCRIPTIONS | ARCHIVE | SEARCH | TABLE OF CONTENTS |