The Immune Tolerance Network at 10 years: tolerance research at the bedside.
Immune tolerance-inducing therapies reprogramme immune cells to eliminate pathogenic immune responses while preserving protective immunity. The Immune Tolerance Network (ITN), sponsored by the US National Institutes of Health, was established in 1999 to evaluate new tolerance-inducing therapies and carry out mechanistic studies using a unique interactive approach in partnership with industry, academia and foundations. Ten years later, the ITN has carried out approximately 36 clinical trials and tolerance studies examining innovative tolerogenic approaches in the settings of allergy, autoimmune diseases and organ transplantation. ITN investigators have published more than 80 original research papers based on this work. This Timeline article summarizes the progress and challenges of clinical research in the ITN.
Bluestone
Jeffrey A
JA
Diabetes Center and Department of Medicine, University of California, San Francisco, San Francisco, California 94143, USA. jeff.bluestone@ucsf.edu
Auchincloss
Hugh
H
Nepom
Gerald T
GT
Rotrosen
Daniel
D
St Clair
E William
EW
Turka
Laurence A
LA
D000818:Animals; D002986:Clinical Trials as Topic; D006078:Government Programs / Q000458:organization & administration; D006801:Humans; D007154:Immune System Diseases / Q000628:therapy*; D007108:Immune Tolerance / Q000276:immunology*; D009316:National Institutes of Health (U.S.); D014481:United States