Immune and lymphatic system II Flashcards
What is present in the capsule of the thymus?
blood vessels, efferent lymphatics and trabeculae.
What type of lymphatics are not present in the capsule of the thymus?
afferent lymphatics. Therefore, lymph does not circulate through the thymus.
What are the trabeculae of the thymus?
connective tissue what divides the thymus into incomplete lobules.
What are the components of the lobules?
an outer darker cortex and a light medulla.
What is in the lobules of the cortex?
T cells, blood vessels, and epiithelial reticular cells that release thymosin.
What does thymosin do?
Directs the differentiation of T cells.
What do the blood vessels in the thymus do?
Allow the thymus to maintain lymphopoiesis while segretated from antigens.
What is the function of the medulla?
allows the entry of mature lymphocytes into the bloodstream.
What are Hassall’s corpuscles?
highly keratined medullary epithelial cells that produce cytokine thymic stromal lympopoietin.
What does thymic stromal lymphopoietin do?
stimulates thymic dendritic cells needed for the maturation of single positive T cells.
When is the thymus most developed?
at puberty.
What are double negative T cells?
cells that lack surface molecules typical of mature T cells (TCR, CD4 or CD8). The enter the cortex from blood vessels and proliferate in subscapular areas.
What are double positive T cells?
Cell that express both CD4 and CD8 coreceptors and TCR receptors. They are confronted with epithelial cells with clel surface MCH classes I and II for clonal selection.
what are single positive T cells?
cells that express TCR recepttors and either CD4 or CD8 receptors.
Where does clonal deletion occur?
the medulla.