Lymphocyte-High Endothelial Venule Interactions: Examination of Species Specificity

Abstract

Lymphocytes enter lymph nodes from the blood by adhering to and migrating through the specialized endothelium of post-capillary high endothelial venules (HEV). Recently, two in vitro assays of this lymphocyte-HEV interaction have been developed, one utilizing arterial perfusion of labeled lymphocytes through an isolated mesenteric lymph node chain (1), and the other measuring adherence of lymphocytes to HEV in glutaraldehyde fixed frozen sections of rat lymph nodes (2). The availability of these in vitro techniques makes it possible to examine many aspects of lymphocyte/high endothelial cell recognition and interaction. In the present study we have combined these techniques (modified for use in mice) with in vivo homing assays to investigate the evolutionary conservation of lymphocyte-HEV adherence mechanisms. We have compared the ability of lymphocytes from several species to interact with mouse HEV. In principle, these studies will provide the background for more detailed investigations of the molecular basis of this cell-cell interaction.