Abstract
Long-term acceptance of transplanted organs without requirement for indefinite immunosuppression remains the ultimate goal of transplant clinicians and scientists. This clinical state of allograft acceptance termed "operational tolerance" has been elusive in routine practice. However, there are published reports of recipients where immunosuppression has been discontinued, by intention or patient noncompliance, in which the outcome is a nondestructive immune response and normal function. The question now arises how clinical operational tolerance might be achieved in the majority of recipients. This review provides an overview of current approaches to achieve operational tolerance, including the use of donor bone marrow and depletion of recipient T cells and the resistance of liver transplants to rejection. It also describes the key role of clinical immune monitoring and future approaches to tolerance induction including inhibition of T-cell signaling, manipulation of costimulatory pathways, and expansion of regulatory T cells. The principles of these experimental approaches may ultimately be extended to provide safe and effective control of transplant rejection and induction of clinical operational tolerance.
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Disclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.