Figure 1.
Factors involved in the expansion of the pool of memory T cells and terminally differentiated effector memory T cells (TEMRA) in kidney transplant recipients. Antithymocyte globulins (ATG) mainly deplete naive T cells and lymphoid hematopoietic progenitor cells.44 This results in a decreased number of recent thymic emigrants (RTE) and favors homeostatic proliferation of memory T cells and TEMRA. The latter phenomenon is amplified by cytomegalovirus (CMV) reactivation and allogeneic stimulation. The patient thymic activity is critical for T-cell reconstitution.44,45