This week, we profile a recent publication in Developmental Cell by Dr. Fabio Rossi (pictured) from the Department of Medical Genetics at UBC. The Rossi Lab focuses on cellular mechanisms behind muscle regeneration, the role of microglia and macrophages in central nervous system pathology, and epigenetic control of cell differentiation.
The paper, “Sex-biased human thymic architecture guides T cell development through spatially defined niches”, details the findings from the Rossi Lab’s investigation, in collaboration with the Zandstra Lab and the Levings Lab, into how sex-based differences in thymus regulation and T cell development arise. Learn more about their findings in our Q&A.
Can you provide a brief overview of your lab’s current research focus?
The lab’s current focus is on how the interaction between stroma, inflammatory cells, and tissue-resident stem cells leads to regeneration, and how it leads to degeneration in pathological conditions. To this end, we use cutting-edge analytical methods, including integrating transcriptomics and spatial techniques, that allow us to expand our investigations from animal models to human samples.
What is the significance of the findings in this publication?
This paper demonstrates that sex-specific differences are detectable in human thymuses well before puberty. In addition, it describes novel thymic niches surrounding Hassel’s corpuscles, whose function has until now been a mystery, and it reveals the spatial organization of Notch ligands within the thymus, shedding new light on how T cells are generated.
What are the next steps for this research?
The new insights will inform improved protocols for the generation of T cells from human pluripotent stem cells (hPSCs).
This work was funded by the CIHR; Genome BC; the Wellcome Leap Human Organs, Physiology, and Engineering (HOPE) program; and the Canadian Foundation for Innovation/B.C. Knowledge Development Fund.
