| First Author | Schön MP | Year | 1999 |
| Journal | J Immunol | Volume | 162 |
| Issue | 11 | Pages | 6641-9 |
| PubMed ID | 10352281 | Mgi Jnum | J:55333 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:1337725 | Doi | 10.4049/jimmunol.162.11.6641 |
| Citation | Schon MP, et al. (1999) Mucosal T lymphocyte numbers are selectively reduced in integrin alpha E (CD103)-deficient mice. J Immunol 162(11):6641-9 |
| abstractText | The mucosal lymphocyte integrin alpha(E)(CD103)beta(7) is thought to be important for intraepithelial lymphocyte (IEL) localization or function, We cloned the murine integrin gene encoding alpha(E), localized it to chromosome Il, and generated integrin alpha(E)-deficient mice, In alpha(E)(-/-) mice, intestinal and vaginal IEL numbers were reduced, consistent with the known binding of alpha(E)beta(7) to E-cadherin expressed on epithelial cells. However, it was surprising that lamina propria T lymphocyte numbers were diminished, as E-cadherin is not expressed in the lamina propria, In contrast, peribronchial, intrapulmonary, Peyer's patch, and splenic T lymphocyte numbers were not reduced in alpha(E)- deficient mice. Thus, alpha E beta(7) was important for generating or maintaining the gut and vaginal T lymphocytes located diffusely within the epithelium or lamina propria but not for generating the gut-associated organized lymphoid tissues. Finally, the impact of alpha(E) deficiency upon intestinal IEL numbers was greater at 3-4 wk of life than in younger animals, and affected the TCR alpha beta(+) CD8(+) T cells more than the gamma delta T cells or the TCR alpha beta(+) CD4(+)CD8(-) population. These findings suggest that alpha(E)beta(7) is involved in the expansion/recruitment of TCR alpha beta(+) CD8(+) IEL following microbial colonization. Integrin alpha(E)-deficient mice will provide an important tool for studying the role of alpha(E)beta(7) and of alpha(E)beta(7)-expressing mucosal T lymphocytes in vivo. |
