What are thymocytes?

Thymocytes are cells that live in the thymus, in the organ of the immune system. Biologists categorize these cells as hematopoietic progenitor cells, which means they are able to distinguish to other blood cells. Within thymocytes, thymocytes enter into the process of selection and maturation called thymopoiesis and become lymphocytes or t cells, important cells for the immune system. During the three phases of thymopoeisis, defective cells or cells that are harmful to the body are filtered and eliminated to the body. If tymocyte passes through all three stages, it enters the normal blood circulation of the body as a mature t cell. In the first phase of thymopoiesis, the Beta selection process, early thymocyte attempts to create a receptor of DNA cells and by interconnecting its various fragments of genes. In this way, each cell has a different cell of a cell that can recognize and prevent against the wider variety of bacteria and viruses. The body eliminates any tymocytes that are not able to successfully show their receptors of T cells on their cellular surfaces.

In the second phase of thymopoeis, a positive selection process, thymocyte must prove that its receptor of t cells can bind to the main histocompatible complex (MHC) of molecules. When these molecules have proteins on their cell surfaces, the cell must be bound to them to determine whether the protein is safe or dangerous to the body. Any tymocytes with receptors of T cells that cannot be bound to MHC molecules are subject to apoptosis, cell death. Some tymocytes that are endangered by apoptosis can be saved during this phase by creating new cell receptors.

thymopoeisis ends when thymocytes pass through a negative selection process during which the body eliminates any thymocytes that arshopen to connect with their own proteins. Self-proteins are harmless proteins made by the body and t cells that are connected to their own proteins can randomly cause immunological reactions. After the successful passage of ThymOpoesis enters the cells into the blood current as mature t cells and participates in the members of the immune system. Some T cells can achieve this with a negative selection process, even if they can connect with their own proteins, but these cells are usually suppressed or eliminated by regulatory cells. If these regulatory cells fail, a person may develop an autoimmune disease in which the cells attack the body.