Journal
NATURE REVIEWS IMMUNOLOGY
Volume 13, Issue 11, Pages 831-838Publisher
NATURE PUBLISHING GROUP
DOI: 10.1038/nri3534
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Funding
- Max Planck Society
- Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft
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In vertebrates, the thymus is the main site of T cell development. The thymus reaches its maximum output during adolescence, after which it shrinks and generates fewer and fewer T cells. Physiological age-related involution of the thymus and failure to recover after injury are associated with impaired cellular immunity; hence, there is considerable interest in developing strategies to combat these deficiencies. In this Opinion article, we briefly review the phylogenetic and ontogenetic hallmarks of thymus development and function, and we discuss experimental models of impaired thymopoiesis and the molecular mechanisms of thymopoietic recovery. At each stage of the discussion we highlight the major gaps in our current knowledge.
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