Functional human T lymphocyte development from cord blood CD34+ cells in nonobese diabetic/Shi-scid, IL-2 receptor γ null mice

An experimental model for human T lymphocyte development from hemopoietic stem cells is necessary to study the complex processes of T cell differentiation in vivo. In this study, we report a newly developed nonobese diabetic (NOD)/Shi-scid, IL-2Rgamma null (NOD/SCID/gammac(null)) mouse model for human T lymphopoiesis. When these mice were transplanted with human cord blood CD34(+) cells, the mice reproductively developed human T cells in their thymus and migrated into peripheral lymphoid organs. Furthermore, these T cells bear polyclonal TCR-alphabeta, and respond not only to mitogenic stimuli, such as PHA and IL-2, but to allogenic human cells. These results indicate that functional human T lymphocytes can be reconstituted from CD34(+) cells in NOD/SCID/gammac(null) mice. This newly developed mouse model is expected to become a useful tool for the analysis of human T lymphopoiesis and immune response, and an animal model for studying T lymphotropic viral infections, such as HIV.