Thymus-Derived CD4⁺CD8⁺ Cells Reside in Mediastinal Adipose Tissue and the Aortic Arch.

ABSTRACT: Double-positive CD4⁺CD8αβ⁺ (DP) cells are thought to reside as T cell progenitors exclusively within the thymus. We recently discovered an unexpected CD4⁺ and CD8αβ⁺ immune cell population in healthy and atherosclerotic mice by single-cell RNA sequencing. Transcriptomically, these cells resembled thymic DPs. Flow cytometry and three-dimensional whole-mount imaging confirmed DPs in thymus, mediastinal adipose tissue, and aortic adventitia, but nowhere else. Deep transcriptional profiling revealed differences between DP cells isolated from the three locations. All DPs were dependent on RAG2 expression and the presence of the thymus. Mediastinal adipose tissue DPs resided in close vicinity to invariant NKT cells, which they could activate in vitro.

SUBMITTER: Winkels H 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8612987 | biostudies-literature | 2021 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature