In Vivo Detection of Intracellular Signaling Pathways in Developing Thymocytes

Information regarding the intracellular signaling processes that occur during the development of T cells has largely been obtained with the use of transgenic mouse models, which although providing invaluable information are time consuming and costly. To this end, we have developed a novel system that facilitates the In Vivo analysis of signal transduction pathways during T-lymphocyte development. This approach uses reporter-plasmids for the detection of intracellular signals mediated by the mitogen-activated protein kinase or cyclic AMP-dependent protein kinase. Reporter-plasmids are transfected into thymocytes in fetal thymic organ culture by accelerated DNA/particle bombardment (gene gun), and the activation of a signaling pathway is determined in the form of a standard luciferase assay. Importantly, this powerful technique preserves the structural integrity of the thymus, and will provide an invaluable tool to study how thymocytes respond to normal environmental stimuli encountered during differentiation within the thymic milieu. Thus, this method allows for the monitoring of signals that occur in a biological time frame, such as during differentiation, and within the natural environment of differentiating cells

Maintenance of T Cell Specification and Differentiation Requires Recurrent Notch Receptor–Ligand Interactions

Notch signaling has been shown to play a pivotal role in inducing T lineage commitment. However, T cell progenitors are known to retain other lineage potential long after the first point at which Notch signaling is required. Thus, additional requirements for Notch signals and the timing of these events relative to intrathymic differentiation remain unknown. Here, we address this issue by culturing subsets of CD4 CD8 double negative (DN) thymocytes on control stromal cells or stromal cells expressing Delta-like 1 (Dll1). All DN subsets were found to require Notch signals to differentiate into CD4+ CD8+ T cells. Using clonal analyses, we show that CD44+ CD25+ (DN2) cells, which appeared committed to the T cell lineage when cultured on Dll1-expressing stromal cells, nonetheless gave rise to natural killer cells with a progenitor frequency similar to that of CD44+ CD25− (DN1) thymocytes when Notch signaling was absent. These data, together with the observation that Dll1 is expressed on stromal cells throughout the thymic cortex, indicates that Notch receptor–ligand interactions are necessary for induction and maintenance of T cell lineage specification at both the DN1 and DN2 stages of T cell development, suggesting that the Notch-induced repression of the B cell fate is temporally separate from Notch-induced commitment to the T lineage

Human CD8 T cells generated in vitro from hematopoietic stem cells are functionally mature

<p>Abstract</p> <p>Background</p> <p>T cell development occurs within the highly specialized thymus. Cytotoxic CD8 T cells are critical in adaptive immunity by targeting virally infected or tumor cells. In this study, we addressed whether functional CD8 T cells can be generated fully <it>in vitro </it>using human umbilical cord blood (UCB) hematopoietic stem cells (HSCs) in coculture with OP9-DL1 cells.</p> <p>Results</p> <p>HSC/OP9-DL1 cocultures supported the differentiation of CD8 T cells, which were TCR/CD3^hiCD27^hiCD1a^negand thus phenotypically resembled mature functional CD8 single positive thymocytes. These <it>in vitro</it>-generated T cells also appeared to be conventional CD8 cells, as they expressed high levels of <it>Eomes </it>and low levels of <it>Plzf</it>, albeit not identical to <it>ex vivo </it>UCB CD8 T cells. Consistent with the phenotypic and molecular characterization, upon TCR-stimulation, <it>in vitro</it>-generated CD8 T cells proliferated, expressed activation markers (MHC-II, CD25, CD38), secreted IFN-γ and expressed Granzyme B, a cytotoxic T-cell effector molecule.</p> <p>Conclusion</p> <p>Taken together, the ability to direct human hematopoietic stem cell or T-progenitor cells towards a mature functional phenotype raises the possibility of establishing cell-based treatments for T-immunodeficiencies by rapidly restoring CD8 effector function, thereby mitigating the risks associated with opportunistic infections.</p

Differential synergy of Notch and T cell receptor signaling determines αβ versus γδ lineage fate

Thymic precursors expressing the pre–T cell receptor (TCR), the γδTCR, or the αβTCR can all enter the CD4+8+ αβ lineage, albeit with different efficacy. Here it is shown that proliferation and differentiation of precursors with the different TCRs into αβ lineage cells require Notch signaling at the DN3 stage of thymic development. At the DN4 stage, Notch signaling still significantly contributes to the generation of αβ T cells. In particular, in αβ lineage commitment, the pre-TCR synergizes more efficiently with Notch signals than the other two TCRs, whereas γδTCR-expressing cells can survive and expand in the absence of Notch signals, even though Notch signaling enhances their proliferation. These observations suggest a new model of αβ versus γδ lineage choice in which lineage fate is determined by the extent of synergy between TCR and Notch signaling and in which the evolutionarily recent advent of the cell-autonomously signaling pre-TCR increased the efficacy of αβ T cell generation

T Lymphocyte Potential Marks the Emergence of Definitive Hematopoietic Progenitors in Human Pluripotent Stem Cell Differentiation Cultures

SummaryThe efficient generation of hematopoietic stem cells from human pluripotent stem cells is dependent on the appropriate specification of the definitive hematopoietic program during differentiation. In this study, we used T lymphocyte potential to track the onset of definitive hematopoiesis from human embryonic and induced pluripotent stem cells differentiated with specific morphogens in serum- and stromal-free cultures. We show that this program develops from a progenitor population with characteristics of hemogenic endothelium, including the expression of CD34, VE-cadherin, GATA2, LMO2, and RUNX1. Along with T cells, these progenitors display the capacity to generate myeloid and erythroid cells. Manipulation of Activin/Nodal signaling during early stages of differentiation revealed that development of the definitive hematopoietic progenitor population is not dependent on this pathway, distinguishing it from primitive hematopoiesis. Collectively, these findings demonstrate that it is possible to generate T lymphoid progenitors from pluripotent stem cells and that this lineage develops from a population whose emergence marks the onset of human definitive hematopoiesis

Identification of a Novel Developmental Stage Marking Lineage Commitment of Progenitor Thymocytes

Bipotent progenitors for T and natural killer (NK) lymphocytes are thought to exist among early precursor thymocytes. The identification and functional properties of such a progenitor population remain undefined. We report the identification of a novel developmental stage during fetal thymic ontogeny that delineates a population of T/NK-committed progenitors (NK1.1+/CD117+/CD44+/CD25−). Thymocytes at this stage in development are phenotypically and functionally distinguishable from the pool of multipotent lymphoid-restricted (B, T, and NK) precursor thymocytes. Exposure of multipotent precursor thymocytes or fetal liver– derived hematopoietic progenitors to thymic stroma induces differentiation to the bipotent developmental stage. Continued exposure to a thymic microenvironment results in predominant commitment to the T cell lineage, whereas coculture with a bone marrow–derived stromal cell line results in the generation of mature NK cells. Thus, the restriction point to T and NK lymphocyte destinies from a multipotent progenitor stage is marked by a thymus-induced differentiation step

Neurokinin-1 Receptor Signalling Impacts Bone Marrow Repopulation Efficiency

Tachykinins are a large group of neuropeptides with both central and peripheral activity. Despite the increasing number of studies reporting a growth supportive effect of tachykinin peptides in various in vitro stem cell systems, it remains unclear whether these findings are applicable in vivo. To determine how neurokinin-1 receptor (NK-1R) deficient hematopoietic stem cells would behave in a normal in vivo environment, we tested their reconstitution efficiency using competitive bone marrow repopulation assays. We show here that bone marrow taken from NK-1R deficient mice (Tacr1−/−) showed lineage specific B and T cell engraftment deficits compared to wild-type competitor bone marrow cells, providing evidence for an involvement of NK-1R signalling in adult hematopoiesis. Tachykinin knockout mice lacking the peptides SP and/or HK-1 (Tac1−/−, Tac4−/− and Tac1−/−/Tac4−/− mice) repopulated a lethally irradiated wild-type host with similar efficiency as competing wild-type bone marrow. The difference between peptide and receptor deficient mice indicates a paracrine and/or endocrine mechanism of action rather than autocrine signalling, as tachykinin peptides are supplied by the host environment

Survivin Loss in Thymocytes Triggers p53-mediated Growth Arrest and p53-independent Cell Death

Because survivin-null embryos die at an early embryonic stage, the role of survivin in thymocyte development is unknown. We have investigated the role by deleting the survivin gene only in the T lineage and show here that loss of survivin blocks the transition from CD4− CD8− double negative (DN) thymocytes to CD4+ CD8+ double positive cells. Although the pre–T cell receptor signaling pathway is intact in survivin-deficient thymocytes, the cells cannot respond to its signals. In response to proliferative stimuli, cycling survivin-deficient DN cells exhibit cell cycle arrest, a spindle formation defect, and increased cell death. Strikingly, loss of survivin activates the tumor suppressor p53. However, the developmental defects caused by survivin deficiency cannot be rescued by p53 inactivation or introduction of Bcl-2. These lines of evidence indicate that developing thymocytes depend on the cytoprotective function of survivin and that this function is tightly coupled to cell proliferation but independent of p53 and Bcl-2. Thus, survivin plays a critical role in early thymocyte development

Extracellular Signal–Regulated Kinase (Erk) Activation by the Pre-T Cell Receptor in Developing Thymocytes in Vivo

The first checkpoint in T cell development occurs between the CD4−CD8− and CD4+CD8+ stages and is associated with formation of the pre-T cell receptor (TCR). The signaling mechanisms that drive this progression remain largely unknown. Here, we show that extracellular signal–regulated kinases (ERKs)-1/2 are activated upon engagement of the pre-TCR. Using a novel experimental system, we demonstrate that expression of the pre-TCR by developing thymocytes induces ERK-1/2 activation within the thymus. In addition, the activation of this pre-TCR signaling cascade is mediated through Lck. These findings directly link pre-TCR complex formation with specific downstream signaling components in vivo