Unregistered User If this is not your name, click here.
		Contact Us | Order Now | Journals | Bookstore | Register a colleague
	Select a ChannelAcneAIDS and HIVAllergy OtherAlzheimer'sAnaesthesiology OtherAngina Pectoris/MIAnxietyArthritis OtherAsthmaBack PainBacterial InfectionsBladder CancerBone Marrow TransplantationBreast CancerCardiology OtherCataractCell TransplantationCervical CancerCholesterol/Lipid disordersCirrhosisClinical PharmacologyColorectal CancerCongestive Heart FailureContact DermatitisContraceptionCOPDCystic FibrosisDental and Oral DisordersDepressionDermatology OtherDiabetesDialysisEating DisordersElbowEmergency MedicineEndocrinology OtherEpilepsyErectile DysfunctionFibromyalgiaGastro OtherGeneticsGenitourinary OtherGeriatricsGERD/GastritisGlaucomaH. Pylori/UlcerHaematology OtherHair LossHeadachesHepa/Biliary OtherHepatitisHipHRTHypertensionIBDImmunologyInfectious OtherInfertilityIntensive CareIrritable Bowel SyndromeKneeLeukemiasLiver CancerLung CancerLupusLymphomasMelanomaMenopauseMultiple Sclerosis Nephrology OtherNeurologic OtherNutritional / Metabolic OtherOb/Gyn OtherObesityOncology OtherOphth. OtherOphthalmic SurgeryOrgan TransplantationOrthopaedics OtherOsteoarthritisOsteoporosisOtitisOtorhino. OtherOvarian CancerPaediatricsPainPancreatic CancerParkinson'sPregnancyProstate CancerPsychiatry OtherPulmonary OtherRadiologyRenal CancerRenal FailureRespiratory InfectionsRheumatoid arthritisRheumatology OtherRhinitisSchizophreniaShoulderSleep ApnoeaSleep DisordersSpineStrokeSTDsSurgeryThyroid DisordersTransfusionTransplant Surgery OtherTraumaUrinary IncontinenceUrinary tract infectionsVaccinologyVascular DisordersViral Infections

SEARCH   News Bookstore Medline The Web Meetings & Congresses Complete Doctor's Guide    EXPLORE :    All News   All Webcasts   All Cases   All Meetings & Congresses   All Medical Resources New drugs / indications English Dictionary Medical Dictionary Thesaurus Warning | Privacy | Awards  Favourite Journals  Click here to choose your favourite journals  Favourite Sites  Click here to choose your favourite sites  Languages  Select languageEnglishFrançais

Donor Cells in Recipient's Blood Help Them Tolerate New Organs LONDON, ENGLAND -- May 9, 1997 -- In patients who have had organ transplants, microchimerism (the presence of cells from the donor in the recipient's blood) is thought to be essential to the development and maintenance of immunological tolerance. In The Lancet this week, Dr. Eric T Elwood and colleagues from Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia, USA, report results that show clearly that these cells can persist in the recipient's blood and have an affect on tolerance. Thirty transplant recipients of either liver, kidney, or kidney and pancreas were enrolled into the study. Blood samples were taken before the operation, which were analysed by a genetic technique to identify patient-specific genes associated with organ tolerance and to make sure that the recipients were free from a similar gene in the donors. After transplantation, blood was tested for donor-specific genes that had been passed on during the operation. Blood was also tested at three days, and one, three, six, and 12 months after transplantation to see whether the presence of donor genes in the blood was persistent. Sixteen (32%) of the 19 patients had microchimerism 12 months after transplantation, but only two of all the patients had detectable microchimerism at all follow-up analyses, showing that the proportion of microchimerism can vary over time. When the proportion of microchimerism is low, acute episodes of rejection are thought to occur, but the authors did not find such an association. This could have an effect on whether lifelong immunosuppressive drugs are necessary for transplant patients. The authors point out that, because of fluctuations in microchimerism, "analysis of microchimerism with a single, post-transplant analysis may not help in making clinical decisions for individual patients." This report is accompanied by a commentary by David Adams and Ian Hutchinson from the Liver Research Laboratories at the University of Birmingham, UK. They highlight the point that "the failure of microchimerism to predict tolerance means that it cannot be used alone as a clinical marker of patients from whom it is safe to withdraw immunosuppression." E-mail this page to a friend or colleague! To print, use this version