Summary
Thymic nurse cells (TNC), which are multicellular complexes composed of epithelial cells and thymocytes, were obtained from C3H-mice thymuses. They were described by means of light and electron microscopy. The morphology of epithelial cells forming isolated TNC compared to that of small tissue fragments obtained by enzymatic digestion revealed that TNC could be derived from all parts of the thymus: cortex, corticomedullary junction and medulla, the cortex being their principal source. This variety of origin, the presence of several epithelial cells inside a single TNC, the presence of non-lymphoid cells, and the various locations of eleaved desmosomes confirmed that their aspect “in vitro” as round and sealed structures can be considered to be an artifact due to the isolation technique used. Indeed, during this procedure, they are formed by a process of wrapping of the epithelial cytoplasm around the tightly associated thymocytes. All three epithelial cell types: cortical reticular cells, medullary reticular cells, and medullary globular cells can form TNC.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Andrews P, Boyd RL (1985) The murine thymic nurse cell: an isolated thymic microenvironment. Eur J Immunol 15:36–42
Andrews P, Boyd RL, Shortman K (1985) The limited immunocompetence of thymocytes within murine thymic nurse cells. Eur J Immunol 15:1043–1048
Brelinska R, Houben-Defresne M-P, Boniver J (1986) Multicellular complexes of thymocytes and different types of thymic stromal cells in the mouse. Cell Tissue Res 244:673–679
Clark SL (1963) The thymus in mice of strain 129/J, studied with the electron microscope. Am J Anat 112:1–33
Defresne M-P, Goffinet G, Boniver J (1986) In situ characterization in freeze-fractured mouse thymuses of lymphoepithelial complexes ultrastructurally similar to isolated thymic nurse cells. Tissue Cell 18:321–330
Eagle H (1959) Amino acid metabolism in mammalian cell cultures. Science 130:432–437
Fink PJ, Weissman IL, Kaplan HS, Kyewski BA (1984) The immunocompetence of murine stromal cell-associated thymocytes. J Immunol 132:2266–2272
Hayat MA (1975) Positive staining for electron microscopy. Van Nostrand Reinhold Company, New York
Hoshino T (1963) Electron microscopic studies of the epithelial reticular cells of the mouse thymus. Z Zellforsch 59:513–529
Houben-Defresne M-P, Varlet A, Goffinet G, Boniver J (1982) Thymic nurse cells are the first site of virus replication after inoculation of the radiation leukemia virus. Leukemia Res 6:231–241
Hwang WS, Ho TY, Luk SC, Simon GT (1974) Ultrastructure of the rat thymus. A transmission, scanning electron microscope, and morphometric study. Lab Invest 31:473–487
Kyewski BA (1986) Thymic nurse cells: possible sites of T-cell selection. Immunol Today 7:374–379
Kyewski BA, Kaplan HS (1982) Lymphoepithelial interactions in the mouse thymus: phenotypic and kinetic studies on thymic nurse cells. J Immunol 128:2287–2294
Leene W, Waal Malefijt R de, Roholl PJM, Hoeben KA (1985) T cell differentiation within TNC related lympho-epithelial complexes in the thymus cortex. Adv Exp Med Biol 186:299–305
Leene W, Waal Malefijt R de, Roholl PJM, Hoeben KA (1988) Lymphocyte depletion in thymic nurse cells: a tool to identify in situ lympho-epithelial complexes having thymic nurse cell characteristics. Cell Tissue Res 253:61–68
Luft JH (1971a) Ruthenium red and violet. I. Chemistry, purification, methods of use for electron microsopy and mechanism of action. Anat Rec 171:347–368
Luft JH (1971b) Ruthenium red and violet. II. Fine structural localization in animal tissues. Anat Rec 171:369–416
Mandel T (1970) Differentiation of epithelial cells in the mouse thymus. Z Zellforsch 106:498–515
Nabarra B, Andrianarison I (1987) Ultrastructural studies of thymic reticulum: I. Epithelial component. Thymus 9:95–121
Pereira G, Clermont Y (1971) Distribution of cell web-containing epithelial reticular cells in the rat thymus. Anat Rec 169:613–626
Ritter MA, Sauvage CA, Cotmore SF (1981) The human thymus microenvironment: in vivo identification of thymic nurse cells and other antigenically-distinct subpopulations of epithelial cells. Immunology 44:439–446
Scheiff J-M (1984) L'épithélium thymique au cours de la croissance et de l'involution physiologiques et hormono-dépendantes. Thèse Univ Louvain
Vakharia DD (1983) Demonstration of keratin filaments in thymic nurse cells (TNC) and alloreactivity of TNC-T cell population. Thymus 5:43–52
Vakharia DD, Mitchison NA (1984) Helper T cell activity demonstrated by thymic nurse T cells (TNC-T). Immunology 51:269–273
Vliet E van, Melis M, Ewijk W van (1984) Immunohistology of thymic nurse cells. Cell Immunol 87:101–109
Waal Malefijt R de, Leene W, Roholl PJM, Wormmeester J, Hoeben KA (1986) T cell differentiation within thymic nurse cells. Lab Invest 55:25–34
Wekerle H, Ketelsen U-P (1980a) Thymic nurse cells-Ia-bearing epithelium involved in T lymphocyte differentiation? Nature 283:402–404
Wekerle H, Ketelsen U-P (1980b) Thymic nurse cells—Intraepithelial microenvironment involved in thymic T cell differentiation? Behring Inst Mitt 67:169–175
Wekerle H, Ketelsen U-P, Ernst M (1980) Thymic nurse cells. Lymphoepithelial cell complexes in murine thymuses: morphological and serological characterization. J Exp Med 151:925–944
Wijngaert FP van de, Rademakers LHPM, Schuurman H-J, Weger RA de, Kater L (1983) Identification and in situ localization of the “thymic nurse cell” in man. J Immunol 130:2348–2351
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Toussaint-Demylle, D., Scheiff, JM. & Haumont, S. Thymic nurse cells: morphological study during their isolation from murine thymus. Cell Tissue Res 261, 115–123 (1990). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00329444
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00329444