A cell atlas of human thymic development defines T cell repertoire formation

• DOI: 10.1126/science.aay3224
• Publication Date: 2020-02-21T00:05:20Z
• Authors: Jong-Eun Park; Rachel A. Botting; Cecilia Domínguez...; Dorin-Mirel Popescu; Marieke Lavaert; Daniel J. Kunz; Issac Goh; Emily Stephenson; Roberta Ragazzini; Elizabeth Tuck; Anna Wilbrey-Clark; Kenny Roberts; Veronika R. Kedlian; John R. Ferdinand; Xiaoling He; Simone Webb; Daniel Maunder; Niels Vandamme; Krishnaa T. Mahbu...; Krzysztof Polanski; Lira Mamanova; Liam Bolt; David Crossland; Fabrizio de Rita; Andrew Fuller; Andrew Filby; Gary Reynolds; David Dixon; Kourosh Saeb-Parsy; Steven Lisgo; Deborah Henderson; Roser Vento-Tormo; Omer A. Bayraktar; Roger A. Barker; Kerstin B. Meyer; Yvan Saeys; Paola Bonfanti; Sam Behjati; Menna R. Clatworthy; Tom Taghon; Muzlifah Haniffa; Sarah A. Teichmann
• Keywords: Atlases as Topic; Receptors, Antigen, T-Cell; Humans; Cell Differentiation; Dendritic Cells; RNA-Seq; Thymus Gland; CD8-Positive T-Lymphocytes; Fibroblasts; Single-Cell Analysis; 3. Good health

Thymus development, cell by cell

The human thymus is the organ responsible for the maturation of many types of T cells, which are immune cells that protect us from infection. However, it is not well known how these cells develop with a full immune complement that contains the necessary variation to protect us from a variety of pathogens. By performing single-cell RNA sequencing on more than 250,000 cells, Park et al. examined the changes that occur in the thymus over the course of a human life. They found that development occurs in a coordinated manner among immune cells and with their developmental microenvironment. These data allowed for the creation of models of how T cells with different specific immune functions develop in humans.

Science , this issue p. eaay3224