Neonatal regulatory T cells persist into adulthood across multiple tissues with high enrichment in the skin

Foxp3(+) regulatory T cells (T(regs)) reside in both lymphoid and nonlymphoid organs, where they play a crucial role in immune tolerance and tissue homeostasis. In mice, T(regs) begin colonizing these tissues shortly after birth, contributing to long-term immune response regulation therein. However, the kinetics of T(reg) generation across different tissues remains unclear. Here, we investigate T(reg) ontogeny from birth to adulthood in various tissues. In lymphoid organs, the adult T(reg) pool is continuously replenished with cells generated at different ages. In contrast, the skin retains a large fraction of T(regs) that colonize the tissue during the neonatal period, with minimal turnover in adulthood. The liver, lungs, and colon exhibit intermediate T(reg) renewal dynamics. Notably, neonatal T(regs) that persist into adulthood display a more activated phenotype and express markers associated with tissue-resident T(regs) and type 2 immunity. Our findings reveal tissue-specific differences in T(reg) generation kinetics and highlight a major phenotypic shift between neonatal and adult-derived T(regs).