Research progress in thymus changes induced by bacterial infections

Abstract:

The thymus is the central immune organ responsible for the development, differentiation, and maturation of T cells. In addition to age-related factors, radiotherapy, chemotherapy, infections, and tumors are also major factors for the structure, cellularity, and function changes of the thymus. Here, we introduce the thymus changes induced by bacterial infections and the underlying mechanisms and summarize the therapies for ameliorating infection-associated thymus injuries, aiming to provide references for preventing or repairing infection-induced thymus injuries in clinical practice.