Thyroid-Related Protein Expression in the Human Thymus

Table 1

Expression of thyroid-related proteins in the thymus according to the ages.

	20s	30s	40s	Over-50s	Total
Positive sample number (%)
NIS	4 (80%)	4 (66.7%)	4 (80%)	6 (100%)	18 (81.8%)
TSHR	4 (80%)	6 (100%)	3 (60%)	6 (100%)	19 (86.4%)
TPO	0 (0%)	1 (16.7%)	1 (20%)	3 (50%)	5 (22.7%)
Tg	1 (20%)	0 (0%)	0 (0%)	0 (0%)	1 (4.5%)
Average intensity
NIS	1.8	1.8	1.8	2	1.9
TSHR	1.6	2.2	1.4	2.2	1.9
TPO	0	0.3	0.4	1	0.5
Tg	0.6	0	0	0	0.1

The expression of NIS, TSHR, TPO, and Tg was detected in the thymic tissues by immunohistochemistry (IHC). The positive IHC percentages and the average intensity were analyzed in the four age groups: 20s, 30s, 40s, and over-50s groups. The intensity of IHC staining was evaluated using a 4-point scoring system: 0, 1, 2, or 3 (for none, weak, moderate, or strong staining, resp.).
Odds ratio of positive TPO sample numbers, 2.96; 95% CI, 0.883–9.903; .