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T lymphocyte (T-cell, thymocyte)

Produced in the thymus from blood-borne progenitors from bone marrow & fetal liver. Immature thymocytes accumulate beneath the thymic capsule, then migrate inward through the cortex, corticomedullary junction to the medulla, undergoing proliferation & differentiation. Mature, self-tolerant MHC-restricted T cells are exported to the periphery to seed/replenish the peripheral T cell supply. Pathology: Surface markers: - T helper: CD3, CD4 - T cytotoxic: CD3, CD8 - naive/resting T cells: CD3, CD4 or CD8, CD45RA - memory/activated T cells: CD3, CD4 or CD8, CD45RO Pool size: - CD4 cells: 2 x 10E11, 1/2life = 156 days - CD8 cells: 1 x 10E11, 1/2life = 167 days see ARUP consult [3]

Related

T cell markers

Specific

cytotoxic (suppressor) T cell (CD8+, CTL) EL 4 cell helper T cell (T4 lymphocyte, CD4+) Jurkat cell Lutzner cell (mycosis cell) mucosal-associated invariant T cell (MAIT cell) regulatory T cell Sezary cell

General

lymphocyte

References

  1. Berzins et al. Trends in Molecular Medicine 8:469-76, 2002
  2. Murasko DM & Berstein ED, Immunology of Aging, In: Principles of Geriatric Medicine, 4th ed,, Hazzard et al (eds), McGraw-Hill, NY, 1999, pg 99
  3. ARUP Consult: T-Cell Deficiency Disorders, Inherited deprecated reference