title: Prolongation of heart allograft survival of rats treated by a Th2 inhibitor.
abstract: In terms of Th1/Th2 balance in response to signals given during donor antigen presentation, induction of tolerance is more often correlated with Th2-type than with Th1-type reactions. However, in our study, heart allograft survival was prolonged by treatment of rats with a Th2 inhibitor. Suplatast tosilate (IPD; Taiho; Tokyo, Japan) is a novel immunoregulator that suppresses IgE production and eosinophil infiltration through selective inhibition of interleukin (IL)-4 and IL-5 synthesis by Th2-like cells but not IFN-gamma production in Th1 cells. Five LEW rats of DA heart grafts were treated with IPD (100 microg/day, p.o.) for 10 days. Heart allograft survival of all IPD-treated cases was prolonged more than 14 days while the beating of heart grafts in control groups was stopped within 9 days. In an in vitro study, the cell proliferation both in Con A blast and in mixed lymphocyte reaction assay was suppressed by IPD in dose-dependent manner. We could at least in part conclude that Th2 inhibition might temporarily suppress heart allograft rejection.
authors.affiliation: Department of Surgery, Transplantation Laboratory, Chang Gung Memorial Hospital, 123 Ta-Pei Road, Niao-Sung, Kaohsiung, Taiwan.
authors.forename: Li-wen
authors.initials: LW
authors.lastname: Hsu
authors.forename: Shigeru
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Goto
authors.forename: Yu-chun
authors.initials: YC
authors.lastname: Lin
authors.forename: Chia-yun
authors.initials: CY
authors.lastname: Lai
authors.forename: Hui-peng
authors.initials: HP
authors.lastname: Tseng
authors.forename: Chia-ling
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Roger
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Lord
authors.forename: Seigo
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kitano
authors.forename: Shu-hui
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Chao-long
authors.initials: CL
authors.lastname: Chen
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001190:Arylsulfonates / Q000494:pharmacology*; D006085:Graft Survival / Q000187:drug effects*; D016027:Heart Transplantation; D051381:Rats; D013452:Sulfonium Compounds / Q000494:pharmacology*; D018418:Th2 Cells / Q000187:drug effects* / Q000276:immunology; D014184:Transplantation, Homologous
chemical_list: D001190:Arylsulfonates; D013452:Sulfonium Compounds; C073028:suplatast tosilate