Intraepithelial Lymphocytes in the Normal Epididymis. A Mechanism for Tolerance to Sperm Auto‐Antigens?

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Abstract
Using a monoclonal immunoperoxidase technique on frozen tissue sections of normal testis and epididymis, a distinctive distribution of lymphocytes was identified. Almost all of the intraepithelial lymphocytes were T cells and the majority of these belonged to the T8+ (suppressor/cytotoxic) subset. The distribution contrasted with the predominance of the T4+ (helper/inducer) subset in the interstitial tissues and in normal peripheral blood. The predominance of the suppressor/cytotoxic subset within the epithelium of the epididymis may exist in order to prevent the development of the immune response to autoantigens on spermatozoa.