Foxp3 deletion in T cells (CD4-Cre) but not thymic epithelial cells (Foxn1-Cre) causes an autoimmune wasting disease.

Liston et al. (page 475) report that a transcription factor that protects mice against autoimmunity is required for regulatory T cell (T reg) function only, and not for thymic epithelial cell function, as previously reported.

Mutations in the Foxp3 gene have been identified as the basis of autoimmune syndromes in both mice and men. This was thought to be due to a failure in the development of immune-suppressing T reg cells, which has been shown to require Foxp3.

However, a recent study indicated that Foxp3-lacking bone marrow cells do not cause autoimmunity when transferred into mice that lack T cells but express Foxp3 in their thymic stroma (JEM 202:1141). This suggested that Foxp3 also functioned in non–T cells, and that the autoimmunity suffered by...

The Rockefeller University Press
2007
The Rockefeller University Press
2007
You do not currently have access to this content.