Abstract
During immune response to an allograft, activated T cells express a number of cell surface activation antigens, among them the membrane receptor for the lymphokine interleukin 2 (IL-2). As the IL-2 receptor is not present on resting T cells, it offers an attractive target for potentially specific immunosuppressive therapy. The rat monoclonal antibody M7/20, which binds to the murine IL-2 receptor, was studied for its effect on allograft survival in two H-2-incompatible strain combinations in inbred mice. Treatment with M7/20 for 10 days markedly prolonged survival of vascularized, hetero topic heart allografts in both strain combinations, with indefinite graft survival in 50% of recipients. The same treatment significantly prolonged skin allograft survival in one of the two combinations. The results support the important role of the IL-2 receptor in the mechanism of graft rejection and confirm its suitability as a target for immunosuppressive therapy in transplantation.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 719-722 |
| Number of pages | 4 |
| Journal | Transplantation |
| Volume | 40 |
| Issue number | 6 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - Dec 1985 |
All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes
- Transplantation