IgG antibody and delayed-type hypersensitivity responses in nude mice grafted with thymic epithelium.

This study compared the ability of foetal thymic epithelium depleted of lymphocytes and dendritic cells, by low temperature or deoxyguanosine (dGuo) treatment in organ culture, to reconstitute T-cell function in nude mice. It is shown that renal capsule grafts of either type could promote the development of functional T lymphocytes in the periphery, as judged by in vivo assays. Both syngeneic and allogeneic thymic epithelium endowed nude mice with the capacity to mount IgG antibody and delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) responses to the T-dependent antigen ovalbumin (OVA). Functional reconstitution was accompanied by the appearance of Thy-1-bearing cells in the spleens of thymic grafted nude mice. The results from allogeneically grafted recipients show that a substantial population of peripheral T cells was present that collaborated with B cells and other antigen-presenting cells (APC) which do not express major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules of the thymus donor haplotype.