Sophie Ezine

A thymic pathway of mouse natural killer cell development characterized by expression of GATA-3 and CD127

Natural killer (NK) cell development is thought to occur in the bone marrow. Here we identify the transcription factor GATA-3 and CD127 (IL-7Rα) as molecular markers of a pathway of mouse NK cell development that originates in the thymus. Thymus-derived CD127+ NK cells repopulated peripheral lymphoid organs, and their homeostasis was strictly dependent on GATA-3 and interleukin 7. The CD127+ NK cells had a distinct phenotype (CD11bloCD16−CD69hiLy49lo) and unusual functional attributes, including reduced cytotoxicity but considerable cytokine production. Those characteristics are reminiscent of human CD56hiCD16− NK cells, which we found expressed CD127 and had more GATA-3 expression than human CD56+CD16+ NK cells. We propose that bone marrow and thymic NK cell pathways generate distinct mouse NK cells with properties similar to those of the two human CD56 NK cell subsets.

Hierarchy of Notch–Delta interactions promoting T cell lineage commitment and maturation

Notch1 (N1) receptor signaling is essential and sufficient for T cell development, and recently developed in vitro culture systems point to members of the Delta family as being the physiological N1 ligands. We explored the ability of Delta1 (DL1) and DL4 to induce T cell lineage commitment and/or maturation in vitro and in vivo from bone marrow (BM) precursors conditionally gene targeted for N1 and/or N2. In vitro DL1 can trigger T cell lineage commitment via either N1 or N2. N1- or N2-mediated T cell lineage commitment can also occur in the spleen after short-term BM transplantation. However, N2–DL1–mediated signaling does not allow further T cell maturation beyond the CD25+ stage due to a lack of T cell receptor β expression. In contrast to DL1, DL4 induces and supports T cell commitment and maturation in vitro and in vivo exclusively via specific interaction with N1. Moreover, comparative binding studies show preferential interaction of DL4 with N1, whereas binding of DL1 to N1 is weak. Interestingly, preferential N1–DL4 binding reflects reduced dependence of this interaction on Lunatic fringe, a glycosyl transferase that generally enhances the avidity of Notch receptors for Delta ligands. Collectively, our results establish a hierarchy of Notch–Delta interactions in which N1–DL4 exhibits the greatest capacity to induce and support T cell development.

G-CSF Therapy of Ongoing Experimental Allergic Encephalomyelitis Via Chemokine- and Cytokine-Based Immune Deviation

Converging evidence that G-CSF, the hemopoietic growth factor of the myeloid lineage, also exerts anti-inflammatory and pro-Th2 effects, prompted us to evaluate its direct therapeutic potential in autoimmune diseases. Here we report a novel activity of G-CSF in experimental allergic encephalomyelitis, a murine model for multiple sclerosis, driven by Th1-oriented autoaggressive cells. A short 7-day treatment with G-CSF, initiated at the onset of clinical signs, provided durable protection from experimental autoimmune encephalomyelitis. G-CSF-treated mice displayed limited demyelination, reduced recruitment of T cells to the CNS, and very discrete autoimmune inflammation, as well as barely detectable CNS mRNA levels of cytokines and chemokines. In the periphery, G-CSF treatment triggered an imbalance in the production by macrophages as well as autoreactive splenocytes of macrophage inflammatory protein-1α and monocyte chemoattractant protein-1, the prototypical pro-Th1 and pro-Th2 CC chemokines, respectively. This chemokine imbalance was associated with an immune deviation of the autoreactive response, with reduced IFN-γ and increased IL-4 and TGF-β1 levels. Moreover, G-CSF limited the production of TNF-α, a cytokine also associated with early CNS infiltration and neurological deficit. These findings support the potential application of G-CSF in the treatment of human autoimmune diseases such as multiple sclerosis, taking advantage of the wide clinical favorable experience with this molecule.

Characterization of T Cell Differentiation in the Murine Gut

Gut intraepithelial CD8 T lymphocytes (T-IEL) are distinct from thymus-derived cells and are thought to derive locally from cryptopatch (CP) precursors. The intermediate stages of differentiation between CP and mature T-IEL were not identified, and the local differentiation process was not characterized. We identified and characterized six phenotypically distinct lineage-negative populations in the CP and the gut epithelium: (a) we determined the kinetics of their generation from bone marrow precursors; (b) we quantified CD3-ε, recombination activating gene (Rag)-1, and pre-Tα mRNAs expression at single cell level; (c) we characterized TCR-β, -γ, and -α locus rearrangements; and (d) we studied the impact of different mutations on the local differentiation. These data allowed us to establish a sequence of T cell precursor differentiation in the gut. We also observed that the gut differentiation varied from that of the thymus by a very low frequency of pre-Tα chain mRNA expression, a different kinetics of Rag-1 mRNA expression, and a much higher impact of CD3 ε/δ and pre-Tα deficiencies. Finally, only 3% of CP cells were clearly involved in T cell differentiation, suggesting that these structures may have additional physiological roles in the gut.

Listeria monocytogenes-infected bone marrow myeloid cells promote bacterial invasion of the central nervous system

Listeria monocytogenes is a facultative intracellular pathogen that is able to invade the central nervous system causing meningoencephalitis and brain abscesses. The mechanisms allowing bacteria to cross the blood–brain barrier are poorly understood. In this work, we used an experimental model of acute listeriosis in the mouse inducing a reproducible invasion of the central nervous system. At the early phase of infection, we find that bacteria invade and rapidly grow in bone marrow cells identified as bone marrow myelomonocytic cells expressing the phenotype CD31pos:Ly‐6Cpos:CD11bpos:LY‐6Glow. We demonstrate that central nervous system invasion is facilitated by injecting L. monocytogenes‐infected bone marrow cells in comparison with free bacteria or infected spleen cells. In mice transplanted with bone marrow cells from transgenic donor mice expressing the green fluorescent protein (GFP), we show that infected myeloid GFP+ cells adhere to activated brain endothelial cells, accumulate in brain vessels and participate to the pathogenesis of meningoencephalitis and brain abscesses. Our results demonstrate that bone marrow, the main haematopoietic tissue, is a previously unrecognized reservoir of L. monocytogenes‐infected myeloid cells, which can play a crucial role in the pathophysiology of meningoencephalitis by releasing infected cells into the circulation that ultimately invade the central nervous system.

Thymocytes may persist and differentiate without any input from bone marrow progenitors

New thymus transplant experiments reveal that in the absence of competing bone marrow progenitors, existing thymocytes can self-renew, guaranteeing thymus cellularity and the rapid reconstitution of the peripheral T cell pools.

Extrathymic Hemopoietic Progenitors Committed to T Cell Differentiation in the Adult Mouse

The role of the thymus in T cell commitment of hemopoietic precursor is yet controversial. We previously identified a major T cell progenitor activity in precursor cells isolated from bone marrow-derived spleen colonies. In this study, we characterize the properties of these pre-T cells. We demonstrate that they have unique phenotype and can be generated in a total absence of any thymic influence. Indeed, even when studied at the single-cell level, extrathymic T cell-committed precursors express T cell-specific genes. Moreover, these cells are not committed to a particular T cell differentiation pathway because they can generate both extrathymic CD8αα+ intraepithelial lymphocytes and thymus-derived conventional thymocytes. We also compared these pre-T cells with fully T cell-committed thymic progenitors. When tested in vitro or by direct intrathymic transfer, these cells have a low clonogenic activity. However, after i.v. transfer, thymus repopulation is efficient and these precursors generate very high numbers of peripheral T cells. These results suggest the existence of extra steps of pre-T cell maturation that improve thymus reconstitution capacity and that can be delivered even after full T cell commitment. Consequently, our studies identify a source of extrathymic progenitors that will be helpful in defining the role of the thymus in the earliest steps of T cell differentiation.

Major T Cell Progenitor Activity in Bone Marrow–derived Spleen Colonies

Common lymphoid progenitors (CLP) are generated in adult bone marrow (BM), but the intermediate steps leading to T cell commitment are unknown, and so is the site at which this commitment occurs. Here, we show that colonies arising in the spleen 12 days after BM injection harbor T cell precursors that are undetectable in BM. These precursors did not generate myeloid cells in vivo but repopulated the thymus and the peripheral T cell compartment much faster than did CLP. Two lineage negative (Lin−) subpopulations were distinguished, namely CD44+ Thy1− cells still capable of natural killer generation and transient low-level B cell generation, and T cell–restricted CD44− Thy1+ cells. At a molecular level, frequency of CD3ɛ and preTα mRNA was very different in each subset. Furthermore, only the CD44− Thy1+ subset have initiated rearrangements in the T cell receptor β locus. Thus, this study identifies extramedullary T cell progenitors and will allow easy approach to T cell commitment studies.

Gene Coexpression Analysis in Single Cells Indicates Lymphomyeloid Copriming in Short-Term Hematopoietic Stem Cells and Multipotent Progenitors

Progressive restriction to a differentiation pathway results from both activation and silencing of particular gene expression programs. To identify the coexpression and the expression levels of regulatory genes during hematopoietic stem cell (HSC) differentiation toward the T cell branch, we applied a new single-cell RT-PCR technique to analyze the simultaneous expression of 13 genes in 9 functionally purified populations from the bone marrow and the thymus. We report in this paper that Lin−Sca1+ckit+ HSCs display, at the single-cell level, a homogeneous and high transcriptional activity as do early thymic progenitors. Moreover, the coexpression of lymphoid and myeloid genes is an early event detected in ∼30% of short-term HSC and most multipotent progenitors, suggesting novel sources for the generation of early thymic progenitors, common lymphoid progenitors (CLPs), and common myeloid progenitors. Loss of multipotency in Lin−Sca1+ckit+ cells directed to the lymphoid branch is characterized by Lmo2 and Gata2 gene expression downregulation. Indeed, highest levels of Gata2 expression are detected only in long-term and short-term HSC populations. Complete shutdown of Pu1 gene expression in all triple-negative (TN)3 stage thymic pre-T cells is indicative of total T cell commitment. Interestingly, this is also observed in 30% of TN2 cells and 25% of CLP in the bone marrow, suggesting a possible initiation of T cell engagement in TN2 and CLP. Also, our strategy highlights similar gene patterns among HSCs and intrathymic progenitors, proposing, therefore, that identical activation signals are maintained until further maturation and generation of CD4 and CD8 coreceptors bearing thymocytes.

Clonal Analysis Reveals Uniformity in the Molecular Profile and Lineage Potential of CCR9+ and CCR9− Thymus-Settling Progenitors

The entry of T cell progenitors to the thymus marks the beginning of a multistage developmental process that culminates in the generation of self–MHC-restricted CD4+ and CD8+ T cells. Although multiple factors including the chemokine receptors CCR7 and CCR9 are now defined as important mediators of progenitor recruitment and colonization in both the fetal and adult thymi, the heterogeneity of thymus-colonizing cells that contribute to development of the T cell pool is complex and poorly understood. In this study, in conjunction with lineage potential assays, we perform phenotypic and genetic analyses on thymus-settling progenitors (TSP) isolated from the embryonic mouse thymus anlagen and surrounding perithymic mesenchyme, including simultaneous gene expression analysis of 14 hemopoietic regulators using single-cell multiplex RT-PCR. We show that, despite the known importance of CCL25-CCR9 mediated thymic recruitment of T cell progenitors, embryonic PIR+c-Kit+ TSP can be subdivided into CCR9+ and CCR9− subsets that differ in their requirements for a functional thymic microenvironment for thymus homing. Despite these differences, lineage potential studies of purified CCR9+ and CCR9− TSP reveal a common bias toward T cell-committed progenitors, and clonal gene expression analysis reveals a genetic consensus that is evident between and within single CCR9+ and CCR9− TSP. Collectively, our data suggest that although the earliest T cell progenitors may display heterogeneity with regard to their requirements for thymus colonization, they represent a developmentally homogeneous progenitor pool that ensures the efficient generation of the first cohorts of T cells during thymus development.