Journal
TRENDS IN IMMUNOLOGY
Volume 30, Issue 7, Pages 295-300Publisher
ELSEVIER SCI LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.it.2009.04.006
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Funding
- National Health and Medical Research Council of Australia (NHMRC)
- NHMRC Biomedical Australian Fellowship
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Thymic involution remains a fundamental mystery in immunology. Here we present an argument that this seemingly counterproductive behavior may have evolved to allow for peripheral selection of a T-cell repertoire during young-adult life, optimized for fighting infections and avoiding reaction to self. Age-associated decline in immune function may be viewed as an unfortunate side effect of this selective process. Thus, the key to understanding thymic involution might lie in a more quantitative understanding of T-cell homeostasis in the periphery.
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