Pertussis Toxin-Sensitive Signal Controls the Trafficking of Thymocytes Across the Corticomedullary Junction in the Thymus

We investigated a role of chemokines in thymocyte trafficking. Genes encoding stromal cell-derived factor-1 and its receptor CXCR4 were detected in the cortex by in situ hybridization. Early immigrant cells did not express CXCR4, whereas their descendant CD44 + CD25 + CD4 − CD8 − cells did. CXCR4 expression was down-modulated when CD4 + CD8 + double-positive cells became CD4 + CD8 − or CD4 − CD8 + single-positive (SP) cells. Positively selected CD69 + CD3 intermediate cells gained CCR4, of which ligand, thymus activation-regulated chemokine, was expressed in the medulla. At the next developmental stage, CD69 − CD3 high cells lost CCR4 but gained CCR7. These results suggest that thymocytes use different chemokines along with their development. Blockade of chemokine receptor-mediated signaling by pertussis toxin perturbed the normal distribution of SP cells and resulted in the accumulation of SP cells in the cortex. Thus, a pertussis toxin-sensitive event controls the trafficking of SP cells across the corticomedullary junction.