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Characterization of Thymic Settling Progenitors in the Mouse Embryo Using In Vivo and In Vitro Assays
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Growth hormone stimulates the selective trafficking of thymic CD4+CD8- emigrants to peripheral lymphoid organs

Salete Smaniotto1, Marilza Moura Ribeiro-Carvalho, Mireille Dardenne

  • 1Laboratory on Thymus Research, Department of Immunology, Oswaldo Cruz Institute, Oswaldo Cruz Foundation, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Neuroimmunomodulation
|August 19, 2004
PubMed

Growth hormone (GH) has been shown to stimulate T cell development. However, its mechanisms of action on the peripheral T cell pool remain unknown. To address this question, intrathymic injection of GH in combination with fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC) was used to assess the effects of GH on T cell trafficking from the thymus to the periphery. GH promoted a significant increase in the percentage and differential distribution of thymic CD4+CD8-FITC+ cells in secondary lymphoid organs. A significantly higher percentage of CD4+CD8-FITC+ cells was observed in the lymph nodes, while a relative decrease of these cells was found in the spleen. Moreover, we verified that GH treatment resulted in increased numbers of CD62L+CD4+CD8-FITC+ T cells in the lymph nodes, while the same treatment resulted in a decline in the percentage of VLA-6+CD4+CD8-FITC+ T cells in the spleen. Together, these findings suggest that GH is a potent immunoregulatory molecule which selectively stimulates the preferential homing of CD4+CD8- thymic emigrants to the subcutaneous lymph nodes possibly via the differential expression of CD62L and VLA-6.

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