Developmental pathways of gammadelta T cells are still unknown, largely because of the absence of recognized lineage-specific surface markers other than the TCR. We have shown that porcine gammadelta thymocytes can be divided into 12 subsets of the following two major groups: 1) CD4(-) gammadelta thymocytes that can be further subdivided according to their CD2/CD8alphaalpha phenotype, and 2) CD4(+) gammadelta thymocytes that are always CD1(+)CD2(+)CD8alphabeta(+) and have no counterpart in the periphery. In this study, we have analyzed gammadelta thymocyte subsets with respect to behavior during cultivation, cell cycle status, and lymphocyte-specific transcripts. The group of CD4(-) gammadelta thymocytes gives rise to all gammadelta T cells found in the periphery. Proliferating CD2(+)CD8(-)CD1(+)CD45RC(-) gammadelta thymocytes are a common precursor of this group. These precursors differentiate into CD2(+)CD8alphaalpha(+), CD2(+)CD8(-), and CD2(-)CD8(-) gammadelta T cell subsets, which subsequently mature by loss of CD1 and by eventual gain of CD45RC expression. In contrast, the group of CD4(+) gammadelta thymocytes represents transient and independent subsets that are never exported from thymus as TCRgammadelta(+) T cells. In accordance with the following findings, we propose that CD4(+)CD8alphabeta(+) gammadelta thymocytes extinguish their TCRgammadelta expression and differentiate along the alphabeta T cell lineage program: 1) CD4(+) gammadelta thymocytes are actively dividing; 2) CD4(+) gammadelta thymocytes do not die, although their numbers decreased with prolonged cultivation; 3) CD4(+) gammadelta thymocytes express transcripts for RAG-1, TdT, and TCRbeta; and 4) CD4(+) gammadelta thymocytes are able to alter their phenotype to TCRalphabeta(+) thymocytes under appropriate culture conditions.

• MeSH
• antigeny CD1 metabolismus   MeSH
• antigeny CD2 metabolismus   MeSH
• antigeny CD45 imunologie   metabolismus   MeSH
• apoptóza MeSH
• buněčná diferenciace imunologie   MeSH
• buněčný rodokmen imunologie   MeSH
• CD4-pozitivní T-lymfocyty imunologie   metabolismus   MeSH
• CD8-pozitivní T-lymfocyty imunologie   metabolismus   MeSH
• fenotyp MeSH
• financování organizované MeSH
• genetická transkripce genetika   MeSH
• kultivované buňky MeSH
• pohyb buněk MeSH
• prasata imunologie   MeSH
• receptory antigenů T-buněk gama-delta genetika   imunologie   MeSH
• thymus cytologie   imunologie   MeSH
• zvířata MeSH
• Check Tag
• zvířata MeSH