| First Author | Fontenot JD | Year | 2005 |
| Journal | J Exp Med | Volume | 202 |
| Issue | 7 | Pages | 901-6 |
| PubMed ID | 16203863 | Mgi Jnum | J:107436 |
| Mgi Id | MGI:3621226 | Doi | 10.1084/jem.20050784 |
| Citation | Fontenot JD, et al. (2005) Developmental regulation of Foxp3 expression during ontogeny. J Exp Med 202(7):901-6 |
| abstractText | Thymectomy of neonatal mice can result in the development of autoimmune pathology. It has been proposed that thymic output of regulatory T (T reg) cells is delayed during ontogeny and that the development of autoimmune disease in neonatally thymectomized mice is caused by the escape of self-reactive T cells before thymectomy without accompanying T reg cells. However, the kinetics of T reg cell production within the thymus during ontogeny has not been assessed. We demonstrate that the development of Foxp3-expressing T reg cells is substantially delayed relative to nonregulatory thymocytes during ontogeny. Based on our data, we speculate that induction of Foxp3 in developing thymocytes and, thus, commitment to the T reg cell lineage is facilitated by a signal largely associated with the thymic medulla. |
