Composite tissue allotransplantation.
Composite tissue allotransplantation (CTA) recently took its first steps in the clinical arena in 1998 with the successful hand transplant performed in Lyons, France. That single operation represented a culmination of many years of laboratory research in multiple fields involving integumentary/musculoskeletal transplantation. Here we review the prerequisite developments in the field of immunology, microsurgery, and pharmacotherapy that helped bring CTA to clinical reality. This new field still has many unanswered questions which are addressed below. Additionally, new evolving research in CTA is also discussed.
Tai
Chau
C
Division of Surgical Research, Cooper Health System, UMDNJ, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, Camden, New Jersey 08103, USA.
Goldenberg
Marat
M
Schuster
Kevin M
KM
Kann
Brian R
BR
Hewitt
Charles W
CW
D000818:Animals; D006086:Graft vs Host Disease / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D007108:Immune Tolerance / Q000276:immunology*; D016377:Organ Transplantation / Q000379:methods*; D014181:Transplantation Immunology; D014184:Transplantation, Homologous