title: Murine Full-thickness Skin Transplantation.
abstract: Murine full-thickness skin transplantation is a well-established in vivo model to study alloimmune response and graft rejection. Despite its limited application to humans, skin transplantation in mice has been widely employed for transplantation research. The procedure is easy to learn and perform, and it does not require delicate microsurgical techniques nor extensive training. Moreover, graft rejection in this model occurs in a very reproducible immunological reaction and is easily monitored by direct inspection and palpation. In addition, secondary skin transplantation with donor-matched or third-party skin grafts can be performed on more complex transplant models as an alternative and uncomplicated method to assess donor-specific tolerance. The complications are low and are in general limited to anesthesia overdose or respiratory distress after the procedure. Graft failure, on the other hand, occurs commonly as a result of poor preparation of the graft, incorrect positioning in the graft bed, or inappropriate placement of the bandage. In this article, we present a protocol for full-thickness skin transplantation in mice and describe the important steps necessary for a successful procedure.
authors.affiliation: Sidney-Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine; Department of Liver and Transplantation Surgery, Chang-Gung Transplantation Institute, Chang-Gung Memorial Hospital, Chang-Gung University College of Medicine; chengcchj@gmail.com.
authors.forename: Chih-Hsien
authors.initials: CH
authors.lastname: Cheng
authors.affiliation: Sidney-Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine; Department of Liver and Transplantation Surgery, Chang-Gung Transplantation Institute, Chang-Gung Memorial Hospital, Chang-Gung University College of Medicine.
authors.forename: Chen-Fang
authors.initials: CF
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Vascularized Composite Allotransplantation Laboratory, Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
authors.forename: Madeline
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Fryer
authors.affiliation: Vascularized Composite Allotransplantation Laboratory, Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
authors.forename: Georg J
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Furtmüller
authors.affiliation: Vascularized Composite Allotransplantation Laboratory, Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
authors.forename: Byoungchol
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Oh
authors.affiliation: Sidney-Kimmel Comprehensive Cancer Center, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
authors.forename: Jonathan D
authors.initials: JD
authors.lastname: Powell
authors.affiliation: Vascularized Composite Allotransplantation Laboratory, Department of Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine.
authors.forename: Gerald
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Brandacher
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D016572:Cyclosporine / Q000494:pharmacology; D006084:Graft Rejection / Q000276:immunology; D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents / Q000494:pharmacology; D008807:Mice, Inbred BALB C; D008810:Mice, Inbred C57BL; D020123:Sirolimus / Q000494:pharmacology; D016038:Skin Transplantation / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods* / Q000401:mortality; D014184:Transplantation, Homologous / Q000379:methods
chemical_list: D007166:Immunosuppressive Agents; D016572:Cyclosporine; D020123:Sirolimus