Applications of Flow Cytometry in Solid Organ Allogeneic Transplantation

The implementation of flow cytometry assays in evaluation of transplant recipients began in 1983 when Garavoy et. al. applied this technology to study the in vitro production of HLA antibodies and observed that flow cytometric technology identified serum HLA antibody levels so low that the complement dependent cytotoxicity assays could not detect them. Since even low levels of antibodies have been associated with early rejection episodes and graft loss, antibody detection by flow cytometry has become a routine technique for the study of donor and recipient compatibility, especially for renal allograft candidates and patients submitted to desensitizing pre-emptive therapies. Nowadays, flow cytometric based assays have become some of the most valuable tools to monitor allograft recipients both pre and post transplantation, with the detection and characterization of HLA-specific alloantibody being the principal application in organ transplantation.