SIGNALING through CD28/B7 and CD40/CD40L costimulatory pathways as a prerequisite for optimal T-cell activation has been well documented. t •2 Furthermore, unlike that through CD40/gp39. blockade of signaling through the CD28/B7 pathway by perioperative use of CTLA4-Ig fusion protein has been shown to enhance allograft survival and mitigate the development of chronic rejection (CR).3 In contras...

Objective. To describe the role of imaging in vascular composite allotransplantation based on one institution's experience with upper extremity allotransplant patients. Methods. The institutional review board approved this review of HIPAA-compliant patient data without the need for individual consent. A retrospective review was performed of imaging from 2008 to 2011 on individuals undergoing up...

Abdominal multivisceral allotransplantation (MVTX) from Brown Norway donor rats to Lewis recipient rats was performed under a 14-day course of low (0.32 mg/kg) or high-dose (0.64 mg/kg) intramuscular FK 506 to which weekly further injections were added in some of the high-dose animals. With all three regimens, long survival was frequently achieved with good intestinal adsorption and weight gain...

Severely disfiguring facial injuries can have a devastating impact on the patient's quality of life. During the past decade, vascularized facial allotransplantation has progressed from an experimental possibility to a clinical reality in the fields of disease, trauma, and congenital malformations. This technique may now be considered a viable option for repairing complex craniofacial defects fo...

BACKGROUND Despite the growing appreciation of the importance of sex and gender considerations in transplantation research, there is currently no framework or good practice guidelines for the appropriate handling of sex and gender issues in human allotransplantation research. METHODS We will conduct a scoping review to synthesize the evidence on how matters of sex and gender have been handled...

Regulatory T cells (Tregs) are an important subset of adaptive immune cells and control immune reactions for maintaining homeostasis. Tregs are generated upon their encounter with self or non-self-antigen and mediate tolerance or suppress aberrant immune responses. A high level of specificity of Tregs to recognize antigen(s) suggested their instrumental potential to treat various inflammatory d...

Aortic allotransplantation in mice has been well established as a model of choice to study the evolvement of chronic rejection, the etiopathology of which is believed to be that of immune origin. This has prompted the postulation that prior induction of donor-specific tolerance would attenuate or abrogate the underlying events that culminate in posttransplant arteriosclerosis. To study the effe...

Several andrological diseases require surgical repair or reconstruction of tunica albuginea, which envelops the corpora cavernosa penis. Despite intense research efforts involving a variety of biological materials, such as skin, muscle aponeurosis, human dura mater, tunica vaginalis, and pericardium, engineered tunica albuginea suitable for graft use is yet to be obtained. The study investigate...

Allotransplantation and xenotransplantation may be associated with the transmission of pathogens from the donor to the recipient. Whereas in the case of allotransplantation the transmitted microorganisms and their pathogenic effect are well characterized, the possible influence of porcine microorganisms on humans is mostly unknown. Porcine circoviruses (PCVs) are common in pig breeds and they b...