Gene expression analysis of a human thymic cell line model of AIRE molecular function

Microarray analysis of AIRE regulated gene expression has been performed extensively in studies using the thymi of different mouse strains, but to date, has only been rarely performed using human model systems, and critically, not yet with a human thymic model. We have generated a Flp-In host cell line variant of the TEC 1A3 human thymic epithelial cell line and subsequently used site-specific recombination to generate a variant that stably expresses recombinant AIRE. We used microarray analysis to determine the transcription expression profiles of these two variants and determine the repertoire of AIRE regulated gene expression in a human thymic model system. The aim of the present study is to use microarray analysis to identify the repertoire of AIRE regulated genes within a human model system, and to validate this model as an appropriate human model system for the study of the molecular function of AIRE Site-specific recombination was used to generate a recombinant AIRE expression variant of the TEC 1A3 human thymic epithelial cell line. The transcription expression profile was determined for both the cell line prior to this modification, and the recombinant AIRE expression variant cell line.