Current opinion in organ transplantation
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Curr Opin Organ Transplant · Dec 2008
ReviewGranulocyte colony-stimulating factor, granulocyte-macrophage colony-stimulating factor, and other immunomodulatory therapies for the treatment of infectious diseases in solid organ transplant recipients.
Infections continue to cause significant morbidity and mortality in SOT recipients despite major advances in immunosuppressive and antimicrobial regimens. Immunomodulatory cytokines provide a potential means to augment the host immune response to infection. This review will focus on cytokine therapy for the prophylaxis and treatment of infections in solid organ transplant recipients, and will speculate on the potential for further advances in the field. ⋯ Despite encouraging results in vitro and in preclinical models, immunomodulatory cytokines have not met expectations when administered to SOT recipients. Nonetheless, the principle of selective enhancement of innate immunity for the prevention and treatment of infections in this patient population has promise and warrants further study.