Open AccessEssential Role for the Lymphostromal Plasma Membrane Ly-6 Superfamily Molecule Thymic Shared Antigen 1 in Development of the Embryonic Adrenal Gland
Author(s) -
David J. Zammit,
Stuart P. Berzins,
Jason Gill,
Elise S. Randle-Barrett,
Louise Barnett,
Frank Köentgen,
Gavin Lambert,
Richard P. Harvey,
Richard Boyd,
Brendan J. Classon
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
molecular and cellular biology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.14
H-Index - 327
eISSN - 1067-8824
pISSN - 0270-7306
DOI - 10.1128/mcb.22.3.946-952.2002
Subject(s) - biology , stromal cell , embryonic stem cell , adrenal gland , haematopoiesis , embryogenesis , microbiology and biotechnology , endocrinology , antigen , medicine , embryo , cancer research , immunology , gene , stem cell , genetics
Thymic shared antigen 1 (TSA-1) is a plasma membrane protein of the Ly-6 superfamily expressed on thymocytes, thymic stromal cells, and other cells of the hematopoietic system. TSA-1 is also expressed in other nonhematopoietic tissues, in particular, embryonic and adult adrenal glands. To address the function of TSA-1, we generated mutant mice in which TSA-1 expression was inactivated by gene targeting. Here we show that deletion of both TSA-1 alleles results in abnormal adrenal gland development and midgestational lethality due to cardiac abnormalities. We also report that TSA-1-deficient adrenal glands have significantly reduced levels of the catecholamines noradrenaline and adrenaline. We conclude that TSA-1 is required for normal embryonic development but that deletion of its expression does not obviously impair lymphoid development.