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Interactive model
Immune age
Drag the age slider to see how thymic cellularity, FOXN1 activity, and naive T-cell output are described in the aging literature. These are qualitative states, not invented percentages.
Key players
- FOXN1 is the transcription factor that defines TEC identity.
- TECs are thymic epithelial cells that support T-cell development.
- RTEs are recent thymic emigrants, a marker of new T-cell output.
2080
Cellularity
abundant
FOXN1
robust
Naive output
high
The thymus is large, FOXN1-driven TEC niches are active, and naive T-cell output is at its lifetime peak.
What changes with age
- Thymic tissue is replaced by fat and fibrous stroma.
- FOXN1 expression declines, reducing TEC maintenance.
- Naive T-cell output falls and the TCR repertoire narrows.
Source evidence
What the literature shows about thymic aging and regeneration
Induced FOXN1 increased aged thymus size and cellularity in a mouse model.
Restored FOXN1 improved measures of thymic output and naive T cells.
Some elderly thymi retain measurable activity and broader TCR diversity than others.
The bridge to Vilon
If Vilon rebuilds the thymic microenvironment, FOXN1 is where we would look first
The direct experiment has not been done. Aged thymus regeneration via FOXN1 is well supported in animal models, but Vilon itself has not been tested in that specific assay. This gap is the central open question of the site.