The role of the thymus in intestinal intraepithelial T-cell development

Tissue Adaptations of Memory and Tissue-Resident Gamma Delta T Cells

Epithelial and mucosal barriers are critical interfaces physically separating the body from the outside environment and are the tissues most exposed to microorganisms and potential inflammatory agents. The integrity of these tissues requires fine tuning of the local immune system to enable the efficient elimination of invasive pathogens while simultaneously preserving a beneficial relationship with commensal organisms and preventing autoimmunity. Although they only represent a small fraction of circulating and lymphoid T cells, γδ T cells form a substantial population at barrier sites and even outnumber conventional αβ T cells in some tissues. After their egress from the thymus, several γδ T cell subsets naturally establish residency in predetermined mucosal and epithelial locations, as exemplified by the restricted location of murine Vγ5⁺ and Vγ3Vδ1⁺ T cell subsets to the intestinal epithelium and epidermis, respectively. Because of their preferential location in barrier sites, γδ T cells are often directly or indirectly influenced by the microbiota or the pathogens that invade these sites. More recently, a growing body of studies have shown that γδ T cells form long-lived memory populations upon local inflammation or bacterial infection, some of which permanently populate the affected tissues after pathogen clearance or resolution of inflammation. Natural and induced resident γδ T cells have been implicated in many beneficial processes such as tissue homeostasis and pathogen control, but their presence may also exacerbate local inflammation under certain circumstances. Further understanding of the biology and role of these unconventional resident T cells in homeostasis and disease may shed light on potentially novel vaccines and therapies.

Differential Requirements of CD45 Protein Tyrosine Phosphatase for Cytolytic Activities and Intrathymic and Extrathymic Development of Intestinal Intraepithelial Lymphocytes

CD45 is a transmembrane protein tyrosine phosphatase essential for Ag receptor-mediated signaling in both T and B cells. In this study we investigated roles of CD45 in development and cytolytic activities of murine intestinal intraepithelial lymphocytes (i-IEL) using CD45 exon 6 knockout (CD45−/−) mice. Interestingly, the total cell number of i-IEL was significantly reduced in CD45−/− mice during aging (10–20 wk of age), whereas the i-IEL number was normally increased in the wild-type littermates. Especially, the number of γδTCR+ i-IEL decreased markedly in CD45−/− mice during aging. The i-IEL in CD45−/− mice were more susceptible to in vitro spontaneous apoptosis than the normal i-IEL, implying that CD45 is required for maintenance of the cellularity of i-IEL. Results from in vivo analyses of the extrathymic and intrathymic development of i-IEL suggested that CD45-mediated signaling is required for the intrathymic, but not the extrathymic, development of i-IEL. Moreover, the whole i-IEL from CD45−/− mice showed a significantly reduced cytolytic activity, and the residual cytolytic activity was completely diminished by depleting CD45+ i-IEL, suggesting that CD45 is indispensable for the TCR-mediated cytolytic activity of i-IEL. Furthermore, we found differential contributions of CD45 and p56lck to development and induction of cytolytic activities of i-IEL.

Current concepts in mucosal immunity. III. Ontogeny and function of gamma delta T cells in the intestine

-gamma delta T cells are located in the paracellular space between epithelial cells. In the human colon and small intestine, 5-40% of intraepithelial lymphocytes (IEL) are gamma delta T cells, and in mice an even greater proportion of IEL are gamma delta T cells. The gamma delta T cell receptor repertoire in the human intestine undergoes marked changes in V region gene usage and junctional diversity during development from fetus to newborn to adult, suggesting that gamma delta T cells may mediate qualitatively or quantitatively different functions at various stages of development. gamma delta IEL have been shown to produce cytokines and growth factors and to influence epithelial cell proliferation and differentiation, as well as the mucosal development of immunoglobulin A B cells. gamma delta IEL also manifest cytolytic activity. However, the ligands recognized by intestinal gamma delta T cells and the role they play in intestinal immune responses, in immune defense to enteric pathogens, and in the pathogenesis of intestinal disease are thus far largely unknown.