Adoptive immune transfer of hepatitis B virus specific immunity from immunized living liver donors to liver recipients.
BACKGROUND
Liver transplantation is often the ultimate option of therapy for chronically hepatitis B virus (HBV) infected patients. Prevention of reinfection is therapy intensive and cost-effective. Adoptive transfer of HBV-specific immunity with the liver from an immune living liver donor (LLD) could be a new approach to prevent reinfection.


METHODS
Forty-six potential LLDs were vaccinated against HBV. Humoral (antibodies to hepatitis B virus surface antigen [anti-HBs]-titer) and cellular (IFN-gamma-ELISpot and proliferation-assay) immune responses were examined in donors after immunization and in recipients before and after transplantation.


RESULTS
Anti-HBs-titers of up to 50,000 IU/L were detected in LLDs. Fourteen recipients received livers from these donors. We detected humoral immunity in one HBV-naïve recipient and in one chronically HBV-infected recipient after transplantation. A transfer of cellular immunity (SI>3) was seen in three recipients. These patients received livers from donors with high anti-HBs-titers of more than 9000 IU/L. Cellular immunity was also detected in the corresponding donors (SI >3 and spots >22).


CONCLUSIONS
Our study demonstrates that HBV-specific humoral and cellular immunity can be transferred by liver transplantation after vaccination of the donors. The transfer of B-cell and T-cell immunity correlates with the magnitude of immune responses in the donor.
Schumann
Alexandra
A
Institut für Virologie, Universitätsklinikum Essen, Virchowstrasse 179, 45122 Essen, Germany.
Lindemann
Monika
M
Valentin-Gamazo
Camino
C
Lu
Mengji
M
Elmaagacli
Ahmet
A
Dahmen
Uta
U
Knop
Dietmar
D
Broelsch
Christoph E
CE
Grosse-Wilde
Hans
H
Roggendorf
Michael
M
Fiedler
Melanie
M
D019264:Adoptive Transfer; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006515:Hepatitis B virus / Q000276:immunology*; D006801:Humans; D016031:Liver Transplantation; D019520:Living Donors; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged