Evidence for down-regulation of highly expressed TCR by CD4 and CD45 on non-selected CD4+CD8+ thymocytes

Immature CD4+CD8+ double-positive (DP) thymocytes are positively selected for further development if they express TCR reacting with thymic ligands of low affinity. However, the majority of DP thymocytes express low TCR levels. This low level of TCR may be insufficient to recognize thymic ligands. To understand the basis for the low expression of TCR on DP thymocytes, we determined the density of TCR expression at various stages of their development using TCR transgenic (TCR-Tg) mice. We found that TCR expression was high in the thymocytes that had recently transited into the DP stage but then gradually decreased on DP cells if they were not selected by TCR interaction with MHC molecules. However, such TCR suppression was not observed in positively selected DP cells and in the non-selected DP cells obtained from CD45 deficient mice or from mice receiving anti-CD4 mAb. These findings suggest that the once highly expressed TCR at the DP stage is suppressed by CD45 and/or CD4 on non-selected thymocytes. Furthermore, TCR suppression is prevented by TCR-mediated signals. The maintenance of high TCR levels on positively selected DP thymocytes may facilitate their selection.