Protective effects of Ganoderma lucidum spores on estradiol benzoate-induced TEC apoptosis and compromised double-positive thymocyte development

Thymic atrophy is the initial event of immune aging and leads to developmental disorders of T cell . Invariant natural killer T (iNKT) cells are a distinctive subset of innate-like T cells, which are involved in the occurrence and development of various diseases, such as tumor, obesity and diabetes. Cell therapy targeting iNKT cells has become an emerging therapy after PD-1/PD-L1, CTLA-4 and CAR-T therapy. However, the scarcity of iNKT cells in the body limits its application in clinical therapy. A large number of clinical studies and preclinical studies have demonstrated that Ganoderma lucidum spores (GLS) regulates traditional T cell development. Nevertheless, whether GLS regulates iNKT cell development and its underlying mechanisms remains unknown. We used droplet based single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA seq) method to analyze the transcriptome patterns of thymus in mice from the control group, estradiol benzoate (EB)-induced group, and EB plus high-dose sporoderm-removed GLS (RGLSH) group.