Low-density cells isolated from the rat thymus resemble branched cortical macrophages and have a reduced capability of rescuing double-positive thymocytes from apoptosis in the BB-DP rat.
Biobreeding-diabetes prone (BB-DP) rats spontaneously develop organ-specific autoimmunity and are severely lymphopenic and particularly deficient in ART2+ regulatory T cells. A special breed, the so-called BB-diabetic-resistant (DR) rats, are not lymphopenic and do not develop organ-specific autoimmunity. The genetic difference between both strains is the lymphopenia (lyp) gene. Intrathymic tolera