First Author | Aifantis I | Year | 1997 |
Journal | Immunity | Volume | 7 |
Issue | 5 | Pages | 601-7 |
PubMed ID | 9390684 | Mgi Jnum | J:44364 |
Mgi Id | MGI:1099945 | Doi | 10.1016/s1074-7613(00)80381-7 |
Citation | Aifantis I, et al. (1997) Essential role of the pre-T cell receptor in allelic exclusion of the T cell receptor beta locus. Immunity 7(5):601-7 |
abstractText | Following the recent realization that TCR beta transgenes can severely inhibit the rearrangement of endogenous Vbeta gene segments in the absence of pre-TCR alpha (pT alpha) chains, we tested whether the pre-TCR has an essential role in TCR beta allelic exclusion under more physiological conditions by analyzing TCR rearrangement in immature thymocytes by single-cell PCR. Our results in pT alpha+ mice are consistent with an ordered model of TCR beta rearrangement beginning on one allele and continuing on the other only when the first attempt is unsuccessful. By contrast, a higher proportion of thymocytes from pT alpha-/- mice exhibited two productive TCR beta alleles. Thus, the pre-TCR-independent suppression of rearrangement by TCR beta transgenes represents a transgene artifact, whereas under physiological conditions the pre-TCR is essential for allelic exclusion. |