title: Microchimerism and regulation in living related kidney transplant families.
abstract: Long-term harmful effects of immunosuppressive drugs and chronic rejection are a persistent impetus to establish methods to induce immunological tolerance to allografts. PCR-based studies have found evidence that humans and other placental mammals can have prolonged extremely low levels of maternal cells as well as other non-self cells, referred to as microchimerism. The persistence of these cells suggests a mechanism for the maintenance of the regulatory T-cell (Treg) responses frequently detected in offspring to non-inherited maternal antigens. We test the hypothesis that the detection of very low copy levels of insertion/deletion (Indel) alleles consistent with non-inherited maternal genes, will correlate with immune regulation to non-inherited maternal antigens as detected by a trans-vivo Delayed-Type Hypersensitivity (tvDTH) assay in kidney transplant recipients, normal donors and their immediate biological family members. Preliminary data reported here compares qPCR amplification of rare DNA templates in the peripheral blood polymorphonuclear (PMN) fraction of cells, with the results of tvDTH assays for linked suppression of recall antigen responses in the presence of non-inherited maternal antigens [NIMA]. The two assays do not show a definitive correlation.
authors.affiliation: a Department of Surgery ; School of Medicine and Public Health; University of Wisconsin ; Madison , WI USA.
authors.forename: W John
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Haynes
authors.affiliation: a Department of Surgery ; School of Medicine and Public Health; University of Wisconsin ; Madison , WI USA.
authors.forename: Ewa
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Jankowska-Gan
authors.affiliation: a Department of Surgery ; School of Medicine and Public Health; University of Wisconsin ; Madison , WI USA.
authors.forename: Lynn
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Haynes
authors.affiliation: a Department of Surgery ; School of Medicine and Public Health; University of Wisconsin ; Madison , WI USA.
authors.forename: William J
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Burlingham
mesh_terms: D002478:Cells, Cultured; D002648:Child; D046528:Chimerism; D004247:DNA / Q000235:genetics; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006968:Hypersensitivity, Delayed / Q000235:genetics; D016030:Kidney Transplantation; D007963:Leukocytes, Mononuclear / Q000378:metabolism; D019520:Living Donors; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D050378:T-Lymphocytes, Regulatory / Q000378:metabolism; D023001:Transplantation Tolerance
chemical_list: D004247:DNA