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Lymphocyte migration across major histocompatibility barriers in splenectomized rats
Immunological Reviews
|January 1, 1983
Summary
Investigating lymphocyte migration revealed that extranodular tissues can remove cells, hindering studies of immune responses across major histocompatibility barriers. This ALERT system may interfere with understanding lymphocyte trafficking.
Area of Science:
- Immunology
- Cell Biology
- Transplantation Immunology
Background:
- Thoracic duct (TD) lymphocytes are crucial for immune surveillance.
- Understanding lymphocyte migration patterns is vital for immune response studies.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the localization and migration patterns of intravenously injected lymphocytes.
- To determine the influence of lymph nodes and extranodular tissues on lymphocyte trafficking.
Main Methods:
- Radio-labelled lymphocytes were injected intravenously into splenectomized recipients with differing MHC (RT-1) loci.
- Lymphocyte distribution was assessed by measuring radioactivity in TD lymph and liver.
- Allogeneic and semi-allogeneic combinations were used to study immune interactions.
Main Results:
- Lymphocyte migration to lymph nodes and subsequent re-entry into TD lymph varied significantly between different MHC combinations.
- High liver radioactivity correlated with deficient lymph node localization in some allogeneic pairings.
- A novel extranodular system, ALERT, was proposed to explain impaired lymphocyte migration across histocompatibility barriers.
Conclusions:
- Lymphocyte migration studies across major histocompatibility barriers may be artifactual due to extranodular removal.
- The proposed ALERT system significantly impacts the interpretation of lymphocyte trafficking in allogeneic settings.
- Future studies should consider methods to circumvent ALERT, such as using tolerant animals or bone-marrow chimeras.