title: Multiple unit pooled umbilical cord blood is a viable source of therapeutic regulatory T cells.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Regulatory T cells (Treg) are potentially a useful therapeutic option for the treatment of immunopathological conditions including graft-versus-host disease. Umbilical cord blood (UCB) offers certain advantages over adult peripheral blood (APB) as a source of Treg for cellular therapy but yields far fewer Treg per unit. Pooling of Treg from multiple donors may overcome this challenge.
  
  
  METHODS
  In this study, we assessed the in vitro and in vivo efficacy of multiple donor pooled UCB or APB-derived Treg.
  
  
  RESULTS
  In vitro, pooled freshly isolated UCB-derived Treg were as suppressive as APB-derived Treg. However, in a mouse model of human skin allodestruction, pooled UCB-derived Treg were more potent at suppressing alloresponses and prolonging skin survival compared with pooled APB-derived Treg. Improved survival of UCB Treg in an in vivo cell survival assay and their lower expression of human leukocyte antigen-ABC suggested that lower immunogenicity may account for their superior efficacy in vivo.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Multiple-unit UCB is therefore a viable source of human Treg for cellular therapy, and pooling of Treg from multiple donors offers a useful strategy for achieving required therapeutic doses.
authors.affiliation: Transplantation Research Immunology Group, Nuffield Department of Surgical Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
authors.forename: Kate
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Milward
authors.affiliation: Transplantation Research Immunology Group, Nuffield Department of Surgical Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
authors.forename: Fadi
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Issa
authors.affiliation: Transplantation Research Immunology Group, Nuffield Department of Surgical Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
authors.forename: Joanna
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hester
authors.affiliation: Anthony Nolan Research Institute, The Royal Free Hospital, UCL Cancer Institute, London, UK.
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Figueroa-Tentori
authors.affiliation: Anthony Nolan Research Institute, The Royal Free Hospital, UCL Cancer Institute, London, UK.
authors.forename: Alejandro
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Madrigal
authors.affiliation: Transplantation Research Immunology Group, Nuffield Department of Surgical Sciences, University of Oxford, Oxford, UK.
authors.forename: Kathryn J
authors.initials: KJ
authors.lastname: Wood
mesh_terms: D019264:Adoptive Transfer; D000818:Animals; D002470:Cell Survival; D005312:Fetal Blood / Q000166:cytology*; D006801:Humans; D016130:Immunophenotyping; D017493:Leukocyte Common Antigens / Q000032:analysis; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D050378:T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D017493:Leukocyte Common Antigens