Developmental trajectory and evolutionary origin of thymic mimetic cells.

ABSTRACT: The generation of self-tolerant repertoires of T cells depends on the expression of peripheral self antigens in the thymic epithelium¹ and the presence of small populations of cells that mimic the diverse phenotypes of peripheral tissues^2-7. Whereas the molecular underpinnings of self-antigen expression have been extensively studied⁸, the developmental origins and differentiation pathways of thymic mimetic cells remain to be identified. Moreover, the histological identification of myoid and other peripheral cell types as components of the thymic microenvironment of many vertebrate species⁹ raises questions regarding the evolutionary origin of this unique tolerance mechanism. Here we show that during mouse development, mimetic cells appear in the

SUBMITTER: Nusser A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12286861 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jul

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature