THE EFFECT OF SKIN ALLOGRAFT SIZE ON SURVIVAL TIME FOLLOWING TRANSPLANTATION BETWEEN MICE DIFFERING AT THE H‐2 LOCUS

Abstract

SummarySurvival times of 428 skin allografts varying in area from 1 to 8 cm.2 and exchanged between 4 inbred mouse strains differing at the H‐2 locus are reported in this paper. As a preliminary to the main investigation, the macroscopic and microscopic appearance of allografts and isografts carried out in parallel were correlated and the macroscopic features indicative of graft non‐ viability adopted as criteria for classifying a graft as rejected. In each of three different donor‐recipient combinations tested, massive (8 cm.2) allografts remained viable for 2 to 3 days longer than small (1 cm.2) allografts. The differences between survival times of massive and small grafts were highly statistically significant. Animals bearing massive allografts experienced the greatest loss in body weight during the post‐operative period. It is suggested that temporary immunodepression following severe surgical trauma may be partly responsible for the prolonged survival of massive allografts.Previous studies on the relation between skin allograft size and survival time have led to conflicting results and conclusions. These discrepancies probably stem from the widely differing criteria for graft rejection used by different investigators. In order to eliminate inter‐investigator variation in future studies involving skin graft survival, this paper stresses the need for different workers to adopt uniform criteria for assessing graft viability. Some suggestions are offered and special emphasis placed on demonstrating continued mitotic activity of basal epidermal cells before classifying a skin graft as viable and showing prolonged survival.