Low-Dose Serotherapy Improves Early Immune Reconstitution after Cord Blood Transplantation for Primary Immunodeficiencies

Cord blood transplantation (CBT) is curative for many primary immunodeficiencies (PIDs) but is associated with risks of viral infection and graft-versus-host disease (GvHD). Serotherapy reduces GvHD but potentially increases the risk of viral infection by delaying immune reconstitution. Because many PID patients have pre-existing viral infections, the optimal dose of serotherapy is unclear. We performed a retrospective analysis in 34 consecutive PID patients undergoing CBT and compared immune reconstitution, viral infection, GvHD, mortality, and long-term immune function between high-dose (n = 11) and low-dose (n = 9) serotherapy. Serotherapy dose had no effect on neutrophil engraftment. Median CD3⁺ engraftment occurred at 92.5 and 97 days for high- and low-dose serotherapy, respectively. The low-dose serotherapy group had higher CD3⁺, CD4⁺, and early thymic emigrant counts at 4 months compared with the high-dose group. GvHD severity and number of viral infections did not differ between serotherapy doses. Survival from the transplantation process was 90.9% for high-dose and 100% for low-dose groups. In conclusion, low-dose serotherapy enhanced T cell reconstitution and thymopoiesis during the first year after CBT with no increase in GvHD.     

Umbilical Cord Blood Transplantation in Severe T-Cell Immunodeficiency Disorders: Two-Year Experience

Hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is the treatment of choice for severe primary T-cell immunodeficiencies. When an HLA-identical sibling as the donor is not available, an alternative donor stem cell source is needed. In primary T-cell immunodeficiencies, T-cell-depleted HLA-haploidentical bone marrow transplantation has been particularly successful in reconstituting the immune system in many but not all of the severe T-cell immune deficiency disorders. This study reports the use of umbilical cord blood (UCB) stem cell transplantation in severe T-cell immune deficiency.Umbilical cord blood was evaluated as a stem cell source for immune reconstitution in children with severe primary T-cell immunodeficiency disorders, such as severe combined immunodeficiency syndrome (SCID), reticular dysgenesis, thymic dysplasia, combined immunodeficiency disease (CID), and Wiskott–Aldrich syndrome (WAS) when a matched sibling donor was unavailable. From 1/96 through 5/98, eight children received unrelated cord blood stem cell transplantation following a preparative regimen for the treatment of combined immunodeficiency diseases. The patients ranged in age from 2 weeks to 8 years. The cord blood units were 3/6 HLA antigen matches in two children, 4/6 in four children, and 5/6 in two child, with molecular HLA-DR mismatch in three of the children. The average time for neutrophil engraftment (absolute neutrophil count >500/mm³) was 12 days (range 10–15 days) and the average time for platelet engraftment (platelet count >20,000/mm³) was 36 days (range 24–50 days). A patient with reticular dysgenesis failed to engraft following her first transplant, but fully engrafted after a second unrelated donor cord blood transplantation. Five of six patients exhibited grade I graft-versus-host disease (GvHD), while one child had grade IV skin and gut GvHD. Immunologic reconstitution demonstrated that cord blood stem cell transplantation resulted in consistent and stable T-, B- and natural killer (NK) cell development. The kinetics of development were such that T-cell development occurred between 60 to 100 days. Initial T-cell engraftment consisted predominantly of CD45RO+, CD3+, and CD4+ T cells, and at 12 to 24 months changed to CD45RA+, CD3+, and CD4+ T cells, indicatingde novomaturation of T cells. NK cell development occurred at approximately 180 days. B cells engrafted early, and study of functional B-cell antibody responses revealed that five of six patients in whom intravenous immune globulin has been discontinued have low detectable antibody responses to tetanus and diphtheria toxoid immunizations at 18 to 24 months posttransplantation.Unrelated umbilical donor cord blood is an alternative source of stem cells for transplantation in children with severe T-cell immune deficiency disorders when a suitable HLA-matched donor is not available and when a T-depleted haploidentical preparation is not beneficial. Benefits of UCB include rapid and reliable recovery of immune function, low risk of GvHD, and low viral transmission rate.     

Ribavirin increases mitogen- and antigen-induced expression of CD40L on CD4+ T cells in vivo

Here, CD40L expression and cytokine production have been analysed in peripheral blood cells from orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) recipients treated with ribavirin for recurrent chronic hepatitis C. The study included 18 OLT recipients treated with ribavirin, eight control OLT recipients and 10 healthy controls. FACS analysis showed that baseline expression of CD40L was not different between ribavirin-treated patients and controls. In contrast, after stimulation with both HCV core antigen and phorbol myristate acetate (PMA) plus ionomycin (IO), the expression of CD40L on CD4 lymphocytes was significantly higher in the ribavirin group compared with controls. In the ribavirin group, the increased expression of CD40L significantly correlated with reduction of HCV RNA levels with respect to pretreatment values. Finally, ribavirin treatment was not associated with modification of PMA-IO-induced cytokine production by T lymphocytes and interleukin (IL)-1beta and tumour necrosis-alpha (TNF)-alpha production by CD40L-stimulated monocytes. In conclusion, these data indicate that ribavirin -upmodulates CD40L expression on CD4 T cells, a property which may account in part for its ability to enhance the antiviral activity of interferon-alpha in the treatment of chronic HCV infection.     

Surgical treatment of primary biliary cirrhosis and primary sclerosing cholangitis

Primary biliary cirrhosis (PBC) and primary sclerosing cholangitis (PSC) are progressive cholestatic liver diseases of supposed auto-immune etiology. The clinical course is unpredictable and, in many patients, leads to end-stage liver disease or a poor quality of life. Conservative therapy only has a limited effect on the natural history, but orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) offers a definitive therapeutic option. Retrospective analysis was performed for 38 patients with PBC and 17 patients with PSC who underwent OLT between January 1986 and June 2003 at our institution. Median follow-up after OLT was 72 mo. Cumulative survival at 5 yr post-OLT was 84% in the PBC group and 73% in the PSC group. Compared with OLT for other benign diseases, actuarial survival rates at 5 and 10 yr post-OLT were significantly better for patients with PBC, whereas there was no difference in survival after OLT for patients with PSC. Survival rate at 5 yr post-OLT was significantly increased for patients with PBC who had a Child-Pugh B liver cirrhosis (93%) compared with those who had Child-Pugh C cirrhosis (60%). Retransplantation rate was 18.2% (resulting from biliary complications in three cases). Surgical techniques had no effect on outcome after OLT in both groups. We concluded that liver transplantation represents a safe and beneficial therapy for patients with end-stage PBC. Cirrhotic patients with PSC also benefit from OLT, with an outcome comparable to that of liver cirrhosis of other etiologies.     

Akhil Kakroo

Recent advances in immunologic techniques have lead to increased recognition of primary immunodeficiencies. A review of patients with suspected immunodeficiencies in a Taiwan tertiary hospital from January 1985 to October 2004 and molecular/genetic analyses done on some patients were investigated. Of the 403 patients selected based on the International Classification of Disease, Ninth Revision, 37 patients with PID (8 females and 29 males) were identified: 17 (46%) with antibody production deficiencies, nine (24%) with defective phagocyte function, four (11%) with combined B and T cell immunodeficiencies, seven (19%) with T cell deficiencies, but none with primary complement deficiencies. Those with secondary immunodeficiencies were excluded from the study. Recurrent sinopulmonary infections (62%) were the most common clinical manifestation, followed by sepsis (57%), severe skin infection (40%), splenomagaly/hepatomegaly (27%), central nervous system dysfunction (22%), chronic diarrhea (22%), and failure to thrive (19%). Seven (19%) patients died, five of infections, one of disseminated intravascular coagulopathy and one of hepatocellular carcinoma. Six novel mutations were found from 11 agreed patients. This is the first report on primary immunodeficiencies in Taiwan covering a 20-year period.     

供体凋亡淋巴细胞预输注对猪肝移植受体CD4+T、CD8+T、CD4+CD25+调节性T细胞的影响

背景：凋亡细胞能够主动调节机体的免疫功能,并能通过调节机体细胞免疫和体液免疫的途径诱导免疫耐受,但这些结果只在大鼠肝脏移植模型中证实。 目的：探讨通过⁶⁰Co γ射线体外处理后的供体淋巴细胞预输注诱导猪肝移植特异性免疫耐受的作用中,对淋巴细胞亚群的影响。 方法：建立非转流小型猪原位肝移植模型。将受体猪随机摸球法均分为2组：空白对照组,受体猪无特殊处理,行肝移植;淋巴细胞组：受体猪在肝移植前7 d经耳静脉注射⁶⁰Co γ射线处理过的5×10⁸个供体淋巴细胞。观察两组受体猪移植后的存活时间,移植后T淋巴细胞亚型CD4⁺T、CD8⁺T、CD4⁺CD25⁺Tr变化及病理。 结果与结论：移植后3 d,两组病理活检均呈急性中、重度排斥反应;移植后6 d,两组均呈急性重度排斥反应。移植后1,3,6 d CD4⁺T、CD8⁺T、CD4⁺CD25⁺Tr升降趋势,两组间差异无显著意义(P > 0.05)。提示,⁶⁰Co γ射线体外处理过的淋巴细胞预输注未能够诱导猪同种异体肝移植特异性免疫耐受,未能引起T淋巴细胞亚群变化有关。     

Neutropenia and Primary Immunodeficiency Diseases

Primary immunodeficiency diseases (PID) are a heterogeneous group of congenital disorders of the immune system leading to recurrent infections, autoimmunity, malignancies, and hematological disorders. This review focuses specifically on inherited disorders associated with neutropenia, which may occur in isolation or as a feature of more complex immune disorders. It has been known for a long time that defined immunodeficiency syndromes, such as CD40L deficiency, WHIM syndrome, or Chédiak Higashi syndrome, may be associated with neutropenia even though the mechanisms are poorly understood. In some PID, neutropenia may result from chronic viral infection or from autoimmunity. Recently, the identification of several novel genetic defects (e.g., p14-deficiency, HAX1-deficiency, AK2-deficiency) has shed light on the pathophysiology of congenital neutropenia. This review summarizes the clinical, immunological, and genetic features of congenital neutropenia syndromes.     

单中心174例原发性免疫缺陷病临床预警症状的初步探讨

目的分析并总结原发性免疫缺陷病（PID）患儿的临床感染特征和预警症状,了解预警症状对PID早期识别的应用价值。方法参考2011年免疫学会国际联合会（IUIS）PID分类委员会公布的方案、泛美免疫缺陷病组（PAGID）和欧洲免疫缺陷病协会（ESlD）提出的PID诊断和分类标准,在首都医科大学附属北京儿童医院2000年10月至2011年11月病例检索系统检索出院诊断中含有上述PID分类疾病的病历,对于诊断低丙种球蛋白血症和联合免疫缺陷的患儿除外继发性免疫缺陷病,逐份查阅病历重新诊断,并做出明确、可以和可能诊断,以明确、可以诊断的病例进行预警症状的分析。结果①174例PII）患儿进入分析,男女比例为4．4：1,其中抗体缺陷为主的免疫缺陷101例（58．0％）,严重联合免疫缺陷病（SCID）34例（19．5％）,吞噬细胞功能缺陷19例（10．9％）,定义明确的免疫缺陷综合征10例（5．7％）,免疫失调性疾病10例（5．7％）。渤5例（43．1％）存在反复呼吸道感染,以抗体缺陷为主的免疫缺陷最为常见,与SCID间差异有统计学意义;卡介苗接种后异常反应在慢性肉芽肿病（CGD）中最多见,与抗体缺陷为主的免疫缺陷和SCID比较差异有统计学意义;腹泻病在定义明确的免疫缺陷综合征中较常见,败血症在SCID和CGD患儿中较常见,但PID各类型间比较差异无统计学意义。③72例（41．4％）患儿存在营养发育落后,PID各类型间差异无统计学意义;淋巴结、肝和脾肿大以CGD和免疫失调性疾病最为常见;鹅口疮在SCID中常见,与抗体缺陷为主的免疫缺陷差异有统计学意义;肛周脓肿以CGD多见,与其他PID类型比较差异有统计学意义。107例（61．5％）有明确微生物学证据。④PID患儿共电话随访到85例（48．8％）,其中死亡28例（32．9％）。⑤124例为明确和可以诊断PID,其中106例（85．5％）具备〉12条预警症状。静脉应用抗生素清除病灶（96．0％）、体重不增或生长发育极度迟缓（41．1％）、反复呼吸道感染（41．9％）和P1D家族史（22．6％）在不同类型PID中均占有较高的比例。结论预警症状对PID有着很好的提示作用,需要静脉应用抗生素清除病灶、体重不增或生长发育极度迟缓和PID家族史对PID有预警意义,中耳炎、中枢神经系统感染和反复呼吸道感染在抗体缺陷为主的免疫缺陷中较为多见,深部脓肿、卡介苗接种后异常反应对CGD有预警意义。慢性反复发作性腹泻对PID预警作用值得进一步关注。     

Outcomes after Haploidentical Stem Cell Transplantation with Post-Transplantation Cyclophosphamide in Patients with Primary Immunodeficiency Diseases

Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HCT) can cure primary immunodeficiency diseases (PID). When a HLA-matched donor is not available, a haploidentical family donor may be considered. The use of T cell-replete haploidentical HCT with post-transplantation cyclophosphamide (haplo-PTCy) in children with PID has been reported in few case series. A donor is usually readily available, and haplo-PTCy can be used in urgent cases. We studied the outcomes of 73 patients with PID who underwent haplo-PTCy, including 55 patients who did so as a first transplantation and 18 who did so as a salvage transplantation after graft failure of previous HCT. The median patient age was 1.6 years. Most of the children were male (n = 54) and had active infection at the time of transplantation (n = 50); 10 children had severe organ damage. The diagnosis was severe combined immunodeficiency (SCID) in 34 patients and non-SCID in 39 (Wiskott-Aldrich syndrome; n = 14; chronic granulomatous disease, n = 10; other PID, n = 15). The median duration of follow-up of survivors was 2 years. The cumulative incidence of neutrophil recovery was 88% in the SCID group and 84% in non-SCID group and was 81% for first transplantations and 83% after a salvage graft. At 100 days, the cumulative incidence of acute GVHD grade II-IV and III-IV was 33% and 14%, respectively. The majority of patients reached 200/μL CD4⁺ and 1000/μL CD3⁺ cell counts between 3 and 6 months. The estimated 2-year overall survival was 66%; it was 64% for SCID patients and 65% for non-SCID patients and 63% for first HCT and 77% for salvage transplantations. Twenty-five patients died, most of them due to infection early after transplantation (before 100 days). In conclusion, haplo-PTCy is a feasible procedure, can cure two-thirds of children with PID, and can be used as rescue treatment for previous graft failure.© 2020 American Society for Transplantation and Cellular Therapy. Published by Elsevier Inc.     

Intestinal transplantation: An overview

Intestinal transplantation may become necessary in patients with short bowel syndrome (SBS) who fail intestinal rehabilitation. Most children requiring intestinal transplantation (68%) have SBS due to anatomic loss. Intestinal transplantation can occur in isolation or in combination with other organs. Many children will have advanced liver disease at the time of referral and will undergo combined liver-small bowel transplantation. Considerable progress in immunosuppression has led to decreased rates of acute rejection after transplantation and to improved early allograft survival while minimizing toxicity.Survival with small bowel transplantations has greatly improved over the last 20 years with chronic rejection being the major contributing cause to late graft loss.     

Potential immaturity of the T-cell and antigen-presenting cell interaction in cord blood with particular emphasis on the CD40-CD40 ligand costimulatory pathway

There are reports of immaturity of the neonatal immune system, which may explain the low incidence of graft-versus-host-disease (GVHD) after cord blood transplantation. The CD40 ligand (CD40L)-CD40 interaction is important in regulating the cellular immune response. We hypothesized that the neonatal immune system may show immaturity in this interaction. We studied the function of the CD40L-CD40 interaction in the T-cell interaction with B cells and monocytes in cord blood compared with adult blood in vitro. Consistent with previous reports, CD4+ T cells do not express CD40L after T-cell activation. In whole blood, adult monocytes, but not neonatal monocytes, were activated following T-cell activation. However, the activation of adult monocytes was not dependent on the CD40L-CD40 interaction. Using the CD40L trimer (Lt), we showed that cord B cells have comparable responses to CD40 ligation to those of the adult B cells. Both cord and adult monocytes do not respond as well as B cells and this is probably related to low density of expression of CD40. However, interferon-gamma up-regulated CD40 on adult monocytes but not on cord monocytes. This potentiated the adult monocyte response to CD40 ligation by CD40Lt. Our findings suggest that the neonatal CD40L-CD40 pair is immature in the cellular immune response involving monocytes and that interferon-gamma fails to activate neonatal monocytes for a response to CD40L. These findings suggest that in the inflammatory microenvironment of cord blood transplantation neonatal monocytes may play a minor role in the effector arm of the immune response. This finding may be one of several mechanisms for the low incidence of GVHD that is observed following cord blood transplantation. Also the ligand-receptor immaturity may contribute to the increased susceptibility of newborns to certain infections.     

肝移植过程中合并小肠坏死2例

背景：肝移植过程中合并肠坏死发生率低,并且多放弃手术治疗导致患者死亡。 目的：回顾性分析肝移植过程中合并小肠坏死的常见原因,探讨可行的治疗方案。 方法：总结207例肝移植患者资料,其中2例患者肝移植过程中发现小肠坏死,病例1行肝移植联合坏死小肠切除,病例2放弃肝移植,保守治疗。 结果与结论：2例患者移植前均存在门脉系统血栓。病例1患者移植前上消化道出血,反复止血药物应用加重血栓,进而导致肠坏死发生。患者肝移植后第10天发现肠瘘,行造瘘术。造瘘术后患者合并腹腔、肺部感染。抗感染治疗并停用免疫抑制剂7 d后感染控制。造瘘术后40 d肠瘘愈合,康复出院。目前,随访两年余患者健康生存;病例2移植前大量腹水导致腹腔间室综合征发生,肠道静脉回流障碍导致广泛小肠坏死。放弃肝移植后第2天,患者因多脏器功能衰竭死亡。可见等待肝移植患者,如移植前存在门脉系统血栓,合并腹痛、腹胀等症状时,需警惕肠坏死发生;肝移植过程中如发现小肠坏死,可行肝移植联合坏死小肠切除,患者可获得良好预后。     

Long-term follow-up in patients with severe combined immunodeficiency treated by bone marrow transplantation

Immune reconstitution was studied in 31 long-term surviving patients after bone marrow transplantation for severe combined immunodeficiency. Donors in 7 cases were HLA-identical and in 25 cases HLA-haploidentical family members, and in 13 of these latter cases cytoreductive conditioning had been used prior to transplantation. At a mean follow-up of 15 years after transplantation (range 10 to 22 years), T cell numbers and functions had remained stable and within normal limits in the majority of patients. Marked variability however was observed with regard to reconstitution of B cell immunity. Furthermore numbers of circulating naïve CD4+ T cells were variable and markedly diminished in a substantial proportion of patients at recent evaluations. Normal B cell immunity and persistently normal naïve T cell numbers were strongly correlated with the continued detection of donor type CD34+ precursor cells in the patients marrow, which were absent in non conditioned patients. These findings indicate that stable donor precursor cell engraftment in the marrow may be of relevance for complete and stable long-term immune reconstitution in transplanted SCID patients.     

Malignancy post-hematopoietic stem cell transplant in patients with primary immunodeficiency

ABSTRACT

Introduction

Hematopoietic cell transplantation (HCT) is a curative treatment for an expanding number of primary immunodeficiencies (PIDs). Malignancies are more common in patients with PID than in the general population, and this review will discuss whether a successful HCT is expected to abolish or alter this risk. Second malignancy post HCT for a malignant disease is well known to occur, but generally less expected in patients transplanted for PID.     

Clinicopathological features of hepatitis B virus recurrence after liver transplantation: eleven-year experience

Objective: We sought to investigate new changes in the clinical pathology of hepatitis B virus (HBV) recurrence after orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) in era of new nucleoside or nucleotide analogues. Methods: One hundred and eighty-four adult patients who underwent OLT for HBV-related end-stage liver disease between 1999 and 2010 were enrolled in this study. Of these patients, 156 received lamivudine (LAM) plus hepatitis B immune globulin (HBIG) and 28 were treated with LAM. The liver function, serologic parameters and HBV-DNA of the 184 recipients were followed up, and clinical pathological characteristics of grafts with HBV recurrence were examined in this study. Results: One hundred and seventy-nine (97%) were alive at their last follow-up and eleven (6%) had developed HBV recurrence at a median of 22 (range 6 to 46) months post-OLT. Two of the 11 recipients were detected with HBV-S gene mutation, and 5 were tested with YMDD mutation. Four recipients who died of irreversible graft dysfunction secondary to HBV recurrence, developed fibrosing cholestatic hepatitis (FCH) because of no effective antiviral agents available in the early stages of HBV recurrence after OLT. Six recipients who received adefovir (ADV) (and Entecavir, ETV) in the early stages of HBV recurrence after OLT achieved improvement in hepatic histology. Conclusions: HBV recurrence post-OLT could be controlled at an acceptable level for a long time and the recipients could achieve long-term survival by using new antiviral agents, instead of advancing into FCH in the short term after HBV recurrence.     

Clinical Characteristics and Outcomes of Primary Immunodeficiencies in Thai Children: An 18-year Experience from a Tertiary Care Center

Introduction  Early diagnosis and treatment are keys to improve survival of patients with primary immunodeficiency diseases (PID). The clinical characteristics of these patients in Thailand were not well defined. Objective  This study aimed to determine the clinical characteristics and outcomes of patients with PID in Thailand. Methods  Medical records of PID patients in the past 18 years were reviewed. Results  Sixty-seven children were registered. Antibody deficiencies were the most common PID (52.2%), followed by combined T cell and B cell immunodeficiencies (25.4%), other well-defined immunodeficiency syndromes (11.9%), and phagocytic defects (10.4%). The most common presentations of antibody deficiencies, combined T cell and B cell immunodeficiencies, and phagocytic defects were infection in the upper respiratory tract (74.3%), gastrointestinal tract (82.4%), and skin (85.7%), respectively. The highest mortality rate (52.9%) was found in severe combined immunodeficiency. Conclusion  These results provide clinical features of PID in Thailand. Knowing these features will lead to prompt diagnosis and appropriate management.     

Lymphadenopathy at the crossroad between immunodeficiency and autoinflammation: An intriguing challenge

Lymphadenopathies can be part of the clinical spectrum of several primary immunodeficiencies, including diseases with immune dysregulation and autoinflammatory disorders, as the clinical expression of benign polyclonal lymphoproliferation, granulomatous disease or lymphoid malignancy. Lymphadenopathy poses a significant diagnostic dilemma when it represents the first sign of a disorder of the immune system, leading to a consequently delayed diagnosis. Additionally, the finding of lymphadenopathy in a patient with diagnosed immunodeficiency raises the question of the differential diagnosis between benign lymphoproliferation and malignancies. Lymphadenopathies are evidenced in 15–20% of the patients with common variable immunodeficiency, while in other antibody deficiencies the prevalence is lower. They are also evidenced in different combined immunodeficiency disorders, including Omenn syndrome, which presents in the first months of life. Interestingly, in the activated phosphoinositide 3‐kinase delta syndrome, autoimmune lymphoproliferative syndrome, Epstein–Barr virus (EBV)‐related lymphoproliferative disorders and regulatory T cell disorders, lymphadenopathy is one of the leading signs of the entire clinical picture. Among autoinflammatory diseases, the highest prevalence of lymphadenopathies is observed in patients with periodic fever, aphthous stomatitis, pharyngitis, and cervical adenitis (PFAPA) and hyper‐immunoglobulin (Ig)D syndrome. The mechanisms underlying lymphoproliferation in the different disorders of the immune system are multiple and not completely elucidated. The advances in genetic techniques provide the opportunity of identifying new monogenic disorders, allowing genotype–phenotype correlations to be made and to provide adequate follow‐up and treatment in the single diseases. In this work, we provide an overview of the most relevant immune disorders associated with lymphadenopathy, focusing on their diagnostic and prognostic implications.     

Expression of CD80 on Kupffer cells is enhanced in cadaveric liver transplants

In experimental animals inhibition of T cell co-stimulation immediately after organ transplantation effectively prevents rejection. We investigated whether the expression of co-stimulatory molecules is enhanced in cadaveric liver transplants, whether their expression is influenced by the transplantation procedure, and whether variation in expression between liver transplants is related to the occurrence of acute rejection. Expression of CD80, CD86 and the macrophage marker CD68 were determined by immunohistochemistry in biopsies from 40 clinical liver transplants obtained at different time-points during the transplantation procedure, and in normal liver tissue obtained from 10 human livers. Expression of CD80 and CD86 on Kupffer cells was graded by comparison with CD68-staining. In a subgroup CD80 and CD86 mRNA was quantified by real-time detection polymerase chain reaction. CD86 was expressed in all liver transplants and normal livers on the majority of Kupffer cells. CD80 was absent or sporadically expressed in normal liver tissue, but in 18 of 40 liver transplants at least one-quarter of Kupffer cells expressed CD80. CD80- and CD86-mRNA and protein expression in liver transplants did not change during the warm ischaemic and reperfusion phases of the transplantation procedure. CD80-expression on Kupffer cells varied strongly between individual donor livers; this variation was, however, not significantly related to the occurrence of acute rejection after transplantation. In conclusion, in nearly half of cold-preserved cadaveric liver transplants an increased proportion of Kupffer cells express CD80 at the time of transplantation in comparison with normal liver tissue. The expression was not further induced by warm ischaemia and reperfusion. However, the observed variation in CD80-expression between liver transplants is not a accurate predictive measure for acute rejection.     

恒河猴肝移植急性排斥反应中核因子κB p65的表达

背景：核因子κB作为一种重要的核内转录因子,是多种信号转导途径的汇聚点,参与机体免疫细胞的增殖、分化及细胞凋亡等多种反应物质基因的表达调控,在体液和细胞免疫中发挥重要作用。 目的：探讨恒河猴移植肝组织内核因子κB P65蛋白表达与急性排斥反应的关系。 方法：将恒河猴随机分为2组：急性排斥反应组肝移植后不给予抗排斥处理,对照组肝移植过程中及移植后均给予抗排斥处理。分别在移植后6,12,24和72 h 4个时间点收集血标本,全自动生化分析仪测定丙氨酸氨基转移酶、总胆红素,取移植肝脏组织行苏木精-伊红染色观察组织形态结构和排斥反应,根据Banff评分系统判断排斥反应程度,采用Western blot法检测肝脏组织中核因子κB p65的表达。 结果与结论：肝移植急性排斥反应发生时肝功能变化滞后于肝组织病理学检查。当急性排斥反应发生时,移植肝组织中核因子κB p65表达上调,急性排斥反应程度也随之加剧。并且在急性排斥反应早期,肝功能、病理学仅有轻微改变时,核因子κB p65表达显著升高。因此移植肝组织中核因子κB p65表达水平的检测对移植后急性排斥反应的早期诊断有重要意义,同时核因子κB可能成为控制移植急性排斥反应的新靶点。