Xenotransplantation
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Xenotransplantation · Jul 2007
Characterization and expansion of baboon CD4+CD25+ Treg cells for potential use in a non-human primate xenotransplantation model.
It is well established that CD4(+)CD25(+) regulatory T (Treg) cells can modulate allogeneic immune responses. Xenotransplantation, proposed as a means to address the critical shortage of human organs, may also benefit from similar approaches to avert rejection. Baboons are a preferred preclinical animal model for xenogeneic organ transplantation experiments, and the characterization of baboon Treg cells will be beneficial to future tolerance studies in this animal model. ⋯ We demonstrate that baboon Treg cells suppress immune responses to xenogeneic stimulation. These studies suggest that adoptive transfer of expanded Treg cells into transplant recipients may provide an approach to prevent cell-mediated rejection of grafts and potentially induce tolerance in the pig to baboon xenotransplantation preclinical model.