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Accessibility control of T cell receptor gene rearrangement in developing thymocytes

The TCR α/δ locus

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Abstract

The joining of T cell receptor (TCR) and immunoglobulin (Ig) gene segments through the process of V(D)J recombination occurs in a lineage-specific and developmental-stage-specific way during the early stage of lymphocyte development. Such developmental regulation is thought to be mediated through the control of gene segment accessibility to the recombin ase. We have studied the regulation of V(D)J recombination at the TCR α/δ locus, be cause this locus provides a fascinating model in which distinct sets of gene segments are activated at different stages of T cell development. The transcriptional enhancers Eδ and Eα have been implicated as critical regulators that, in conjunction with other cis-acting elements, confer region-specific and developmental-stage-specific changes in gene segment accessibility within TCR α/δ locus chromatin. Current work suggests that they may do so by functioning as regional modulators of histone acetylation.

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Author notes

  1. Michael S. Krangel

    Present address: Department of Immunology, Duke University Medical Center, Research Drive, 27710, Durham, NC

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Immunology, Duke University Medical Center, Research Drive, 27710, Durham, NC

    Michelle T. McMurry, Cristina hernandez-Munain, Xiao-Ping Zhong & Juan Carabana

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  1. Michael S. Krangel
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  2. Michelle T. McMurry
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  3. Cristina hernandez-Munain
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  4. Xiao-Ping Zhong
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  5. Juan Carabana
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Krangel, M.S., McMurry, M.T., hernandez-Munain, C. et al. Accessibility control of T cell receptor gene rearrangement in developing thymocytes. Immunol Res 22, 127–135 (2000). https://doi.org/10.1385/IR:22:2-3:127

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1385/IR:22:2-3:127

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