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Thymic Epithelial Cells
Author(s) -
CLAESSON M. H.,
ROPKE C.
Publication year - 1990
Publication title -
scandinavian journal of immunology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.934
H-Index - 88
eISSN - 1365-3083
pISSN - 0300-9475
DOI - 10.1111/j.1365-3083.1990.tb03201.x
Subject(s) - stromal cell , cytotoxic t cell , in vitro , microbiology and biotechnology , veto , negative selection , biology , immunology , thymocyte , chemistry , t cell , cancer research , immune system , biochemistry , gene , political science , genome , politics , law
We show that thymic epithelial cells grown under serum‐free conditions in a chemically defined culture medium can act as veto cells in vitro. The veto activity of thymic epithelial cells results in inactivation of specific alloreactive cytotoxic T‐cell precursors at the clonal level. It is concluded that the epithelial stromal cells of the thymus, by acting as veto cells, may he responsible for the negative intrathymic selection of self‐reactive thymocytes leading to elimination of the vast majority of immature thymic lymphocytes.