The distribution of rapidly and slowly renewed T, B, and “null” lymphocytes in mouse bone marrow, thymus, lymph nodes, and spleen

Abstract

Combined radioautography and immunofluorescence were employed to discern the proportions of rapidly renewed (RR) and slowly renewed (SR) T, B, and null cells in mouse lymph nodes (LN), spleen (Spl), thymus (Thy), and the lymphocyte-rich fraction of bone marrow (BML). Thy and BML were found to consist predominantly of cells with a rapid turnover rate (95.4 and 76.9%, respectively) in accord with their roles as primary lymphoid organs. In contrast, the secondary lymphoid organs were primarily composed of SR cells (LN, 73.4%; Spl, 67.8%) and contained a more even admixture of the six lymphocyte subsets. Most cells in Thy were RR T cells (93.3%), whereas the predominant lymphocyte subpopulation in both LN and Spl consisted of SR T cells (56 and 50%, respectively), with RR T cells being much less frequent (14.6% LN; 6.8% Spl). BML contained both RR and SR cells which stained with the T-cell reagent (7.8 and 7.1%). These percentages are probably overestimates, however, since this reagent stained some nonlymphoid cells in BML. RR B cells were most plentiful in BML (31.4%) and Spl (23.3%), less common in LN (11.2%), and rare in Thy (0.4%). SR B cells were equally numerous in Spl (16%), LN (15.4%), and BML (15.3%). RR null cells were the most prevalent cell type in BML (37.7%), but were infrequent in other tissues (1.6% Thy, 2.1% LN, 2.1% Spl). SR null cells were rare in all tissues (0% Thy, 2% LN, 2.1% Spl, 0.7% BML). These experiments represent the first comprehensive investigation of the composition of the lymphomyeloid organs in terms of RR and SR T, B, and null cells. They conclusively demonstrate RR and SR lymphocytes in all three functional categories (T, B, and null) and show characteristic tissue distributions of the six lymphocyte subsets.