title: Dendritic polyglycerol sulfate attenuates murine graft-versus-host disease.
abstract: Graft-versus-host disease (GvHD) is a severe immune reaction commonly occurring after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. The outcome of patients who do not respond to the currently used immunosuppressive drugs is poor, thus there is an urgent need for the evaluation of new therapies. Heparin has a well-known anti-inflammatory effect and heparin analogues with a low anticoagulant effect are interesting candidates as new anti-inflammatory drugs. We explored the therapeutic potential of dendritic polyglycerol sulfates (dPGS), a novel class of heparin derivatives, on murine acute GvHD in vivo. The therapeutic effect of dPGS on murine GvHD was more intense after intravenous application compared to subcutaneous injection. An increased survival rate and improved clinical scores were observed in mice treated with 5 mg/kg once a week. In these animals, there was a reduction in the percentage of CD4(+) and CD8(+) T cells, which are the main effectors of GvHD. In addition, dPGS treatment decreased the number of tumor necrosis factor alpha (TNFα)-producing T cells. Increasing the dose of dPGS reversed the positive effect on survival as well as the clinical score, which indicates a small therapeutic range. Here, we report for the first time that dPGS have a significant immunosuppressive in vivo effect in a mouse model of severe acute GvHD. Therefore, we propose to study dPGS as promising candidates for the development of potential new drugs in the treatment of steroid-refractory GvHD patients first in larger animals and later in humans.
authors.affiliation: Department of Transfusion Medicine, University Medical Center Göttingen, Robert-Koch-Str. 40, 37075, Göttingen, Germany. holger.budde@med.uni-goettingen.de.
authors.forename: Holger
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Budde
authors.affiliation: Department of Transfusion Medicine, University Medical Center Göttingen, Robert-Koch-Str. 40, 37075, Göttingen, Germany.
authors.forename: Marie-Sophie
authors.initials: MS
authors.lastname: Sorns
authors.affiliation: mivenion GmbH, Robert-Koch-Platz 4, 10115, Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: Pia
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Welker
authors.affiliation: mivenion GmbH, Robert-Koch-Platz 4, 10115, Berlin, Germany.
authors.forename: Kai
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Licha
authors.affiliation: Department of Radiotherapy and Radiooncology, University Medical Center Göttingen, Robert-Koch-Str. 40, 37075, Göttingen, Germany.
authors.forename: Hendrik
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Wolff
authors.affiliation: Department of Transfusion Medicine, University Medical Center Göttingen, Robert-Koch-Str. 40, 37075, Göttingen, Germany.
authors.forename: Joachim
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Riggert
authors.affiliation: Department of Hematology and Oncology, University Medical Center Göttingen, Robert-Koch-Str. 40, 37075, Göttingen, Germany.
authors.forename: Gerald
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Wulf
authors.affiliation: Department of Transfusion Medicine, University Medical Center Göttingen, Robert-Koch-Str. 40, 37075, Göttingen, Germany.
authors.forename: Tobias J
authors.initials: TJ
authors.lastname: Legler
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D016026:Bone Marrow Transplantation / Q000009:adverse effects; D050091:Dendrimers / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D005990:Glycerol / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D006086:Graft vs Host Disease / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology / Q000517:prevention & control*; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D011108:Polymers / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D013431:Sulfates / Q000627:therapeutic use*
chemical_list: D050091:Dendrimers; D011108:Polymers; D013431:Sulfates; C043941:polyglycerol; D005990:Glycerol
keywords: Dendritic polyglycerol sulfate; GvHD; Heparin derivatives; Inflammation