Acquisition of immune competence by a subset of human cortical thymocytes expressing mature T cell antigens.

Previous studies indicated that the human thymus is composed of several discrete compartments. Cortical thymocytes are reactive with a monoclonal antibody, anti-T6 (TL-like) and coexpress antigens defined by antibodies anti-T4 and anti-T8. In contrast, most medullary thymocytes are unreactive with anti-T6, express either T4 or T8 antigens, and more importantly, brightly stain with anti-T3 and anti-T1, which define mature T cell antigens. Only a minor population of cortical thymocytes strongly express T1 and T3 antigens (T1+T3+). In the present study, we characterized this latter subpopulation of brightly staining T1+ cortical thymocytes. Because murine and human cortical thymocytes alone bear receptors for peanut agglutinin (PNA), cortical PNA+ thymocytes were separated from medullary PNA- thymocytes by fluorescence-activated cell sorting and were subsequently fractionated into PNA+T1+ (strongly anti-T1-reactive) and PNA+T1- (unreactive or weakly anti-T1-reactive) populations. The PNA+T1+ cells represented only 10 to 20% of thymic cortical lymphocytes. Whereas the PNA+T1- subset was unresponsive to PHA or alloantigen even in the presence of IL 2, the PNA+T1+ subset gave a brisk response to both stimuli on addition of IL 2. This latter response was similar to that of the PNA-T1+ medullary thymocytes. These results suggest that acquisition of mature T cell antigens is associated with immunocompetence despite a cortical localization.