Publications by authors named "Anna Kubetz"
Background: Induction of donor-specific tolerance is a promising approach to achieve long-term graft patency in transplantation with little to no maintenance immunosuppression. Changes to the recipient's T cell receptor (TCR) repertoire are understood to play a pivotal role in the establishment of a robust state of tolerance in chimerism-based transplantation protocols.
Methods: We investigated changes to the TCR repertoires of patients participating in an ongoing prospective, controlled, phase I/IIa trial designed to evaluate the safety and efficacy of combination cell therapy in living donor kidney transplantation.
Article Synopsis
- The study examines the limitations of using CTLA4-Ig (belatacept) in preventing organ rejection during transplantation, particularly noting that T cell-mediated rejection still occurs even after treatment with anti-thymocyte globulin (ATG).
- Despite ATG improving T cell balance in the spleen, it fails to regulate T cells within transplanted hearts, creating a pro-inflammatory environment.
- Combining ATG with IL-6 blockade showed promising results by reducing graft inflammation and increasing regulatory T cells, leading to long-term survival of heart transplants without rejection, demonstrating a potential strategy to enhance the effectiveness of costimulation blockade in clinical settings.