Inside your chest, a bootcamp is pumping out trained killers (and it’s called the thymus)

Meet your new favorite organ, the thymus. Scientists have since discovered a whole world within this little wad of tissue in your chest – a complex system that trains and equips some of your body's most important fighters against disease. Jarrod Dudakov, professor of immunology at the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Center in Seattle, explains how the thymus can help us understand why our bodies get worse at fighting disease as we age.  More resources: Jarrod Dudakov at the Fred Hutchinson Canter Research Center The landmark 1961 research article in The Lancet, “The Immunological Function of the Thymus” Pocket Science is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network. It is hosted by Gabriel Spitzer, edited by Jim Gates and produced by Anna Boiko-Weyrauch.  We can only make Pocket Science because listeners support us. Tap here to make a gift and keep Pocket Science in your feed.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.