Concise review: Dendritic cell development in the context of the spleen microenvironment

The dendritic cell (DC) population in spleen comprises a mixture of cells including endogenous DC progenitors, DC precursors migrating in from blood and bone marrow, and DC in different states of differentiation and activation. A role for different microenvironments in supporting the dynamic development of murine DC of different types or lineages is considered here. Recent evidence for production of DC dependent on splenic stromal cells is reviewed in the light of evidence that cell production is dependent on cells comprising an endothelial niche in spleen. The possibility that self-renewing progenitors in spleen give rise to DC with tolerogenic or regulatory rather than immunostimulatory function is considered.