Facilitating cells: role in inducing transplantation tolerance.

Purpose Of Review: This review discusses the role and mechanisms by which facilitating cells promote stem cell engraftment and induce tolerance in HLA-disparate kidney transplant recipients.

Recent Finding: Facilitating cells in both mice and human are heterogeneous, consisting of several subpopulations. They have been shown to enhance stem cell engraftment in allogeneic recipients.

HSCT-Based Approaches for Tolerance Induction in Renal Transplant.

Renal transplantation has become the preferred treatment for end stage kidney failure. Although short-term graft survival has significantly improved as advances in immunosuppression have occurred, long-term patient and graft survival have not. Approximately only 50% of renal transplant recipients are alive at 10 years due to the toxicities of immunosuppression and alloimmunity.