Migration patterns of thymus and bursa lymphocytes in normal chickens and Obese strain chickens with spontaneous thyroiditis

The migration patterns of different populations of lymphocytes were studied in normal White Leghorn and Obese strain chickens, the latter having spontaneously occuring autoimmune thyroiditis. Suspensions of spleen, thymus, or bursa cells were labeled in vitro with either 3H-adenosine or chromium-51 injected into recipient chickens of the same age and strain as the donor and traced by autoradiography or counts of whole organs. The migration patterns of bursa or thymus cells were also studied by autoradiography following in situ labeling of these organs by local injection of 3H-thymidine. All three populations of cells had similar migration patterns in both chicken strains following in vitro or in vivo labeling. The majority of cells “home” to the spleen. Smaller numbers of labeled cells were observed in the cecal tonsils, thymus medulla and in perivascular accumulations of lymphoid tissue found in various non-lymphoid organs. In the Obese strain chickens with thyroiditis, labeled cells from all three cell populations also localized in thyroid infiltrates.