| First Author | von Freeden-Jeffry U | Year | 1995 |
| Journal | J Exp Med | Volume | 181 |
| Issue | 4 | Pages | 1519-26 |
| PubMed ID | 7699333 | Mgi Jnum | J:24165 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:71919 | Doi | 10.1084/jem.181.4.1519 |
| Citation | von Freeden-Jeffry U, et al. (1995) Lymphopenia in interleukin (IL)-7 gene-deleted mice identifies IL-7 as a nonredundant cytokine. J Exp Med 181(4):1519-26 |
| abstractText | Interleukin (IL)-7 is a potent stimulus for immature T and B cells and, to a lesser extent, mature T cells. We have inactivated the IL-7 gene in the mouse germline by using gene-targeting techniques to further understand the biology of IL-7. Mutant mice were highly lymphopenic in the peripheral blood and lymphoid organs. Bone marrow B lymphopoiesis was blocked at the transition from pro-B to pre-B cells. Thymic cellularity was reduced 20-fold, but retained normal distribution of CD4 and CD8. Splenic T cellularity was reduced 10-fold. Splenic B cells, also reduced in number, showed an abnormal population of immature B cells in adult animals. The remaining splenic populations of lymphocytes showed normal responsiveness to mitogenic stimuli. These data show that proper T and B cell development is dependent on IL-7. The IL-7-deficient mice are the first example of single cytokine-deficient mice that exhibit severe lymphoid abnormalities. |
