Figure 4. CD4⁺CD8⁺ T cell numbers in thymus of T. cruzi infected OVA TCR transgenic mice.

OVA-TCR transgenic mice noninfected or infected with T. cruzi (9 days post-infection) were injected i.v. with 0.5 ml of 450 mM solution of OVAp323–339 daily for 3 days and thymocytes were isolated on the fourth day for quantification of double-positive CD4⁺CD8⁺ T cells by flow cytometry. For control, mice were injected with 0.5 ml of PBS instead of the cognate antigen as indicated in the histogram. All numbers are given in 10⁶. Each value represents the mean of total DP cell numbers in 4-8 mice per group. Data are expressed as mean ± standard error of triplicate measurements of one out of two representative experiments. *Differences between groups are significant (P<0.05). These data are representative of two independent experiments using five mice per group.