Cell death in the thymus--it' s all a matter of contacts.

TitleCell death in the thymus--it' s all a matter of contacts.
Publication TypeJournal Article
Year of Publication2003
AuthorsMinter, LM, Osborne, BA
JournalSeminars in immunology
Volume15
Issue3
Pagination135-44
Date Published2003 Jun
AbstractApoptosis, or programmed cell death, plays a critical role in shaping the T cell repertoire, deleting unproductive as well as potentially autoreactive T cells. Our understanding of how thymocyte apoptosis is regulated is continually evolving, as new essential modulators of this process are discovered. A conundrum that remains, however, is how signaling through essentially the same receptors and cascades evokes distinct biological responses: death by neglect, positive or negative selection. We hypothesize that the immunological synapse (IS) may be critical to transducing survival signals during thymocyte development, and suggest that factors affecting IS assembly may also influence T cell selection.
Alternate JournalSemin. Immunol.