Isolation of adult murine thymic stromal cells that naturally express Notch ligands.

This communication summarizes the procedures that enabled isolation of adult murine thymic stromal cell lines that naturally express Notch ligands Jagged-1 or Delta-1. Histochemical characterization of these cell lines, in terms of ligand and cell type, revealed epithelial cells that bear an antigen characteristic of the thymic medulla and express either Jagged-1 or Delta-1. FACS sorting of stromal cells that naturally express these and other ligands is thus feasible, and such cells can be used to investigate the activity of each ligand in Notch-mediated commitment to the T-lymphocyte pathway.