Thymic nurse cell
Thymic nurse cells are epithelial cells in cortex of the thymus that bind and internalize double positive T cells. They support lymphocyte proliferation by producing IL-7. They are also important in the blood–thymus barrier where immature T-cells are prevented from entering the general circulation. If they were released they would be killed through apoptosis.
Nurse cell
The term nurse cell is used in several unrelated ways in different scientific fields:
Human physiology
Nurse cells are specialized macrophages residing in the bone marrow that assist in the development of red blood cells. They absorb the nuclei of immature red blood cells and may provide growth factors to help the red blood cells mature. In the bone marrow, immature red blood cells (erythroblasts) can be seen grouped in a cluster around a nurse cell.
The epithelial cell found in the cortex of the Thymus is also called a "nurse cell." These cells produce Thymic hormones that cause T Lymphocytes to mature and differentiate.
Parasitology
In parasitology, a nurse cell is an infected cell in the disease trichinosis discovered by Dickson Despommier. A trichinella larva enters a cell and develops there, probably as a way of concealing itself from the immune system. The parasite has evolved a way of stimulating blood vessel development around the cell, in order to receive the nutrients it needs. In trichinosis, nurse cells are invariably skeletal muscle cells; these are the only type of cell that can support the parasite.
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