Indirect evidence that maternal microchimerism in cord blood mediates a graft-versus-leukemia effect in cord blood transplantation.

ABSTRACT: During pregnancy women can develop B- and T-cell immunity against the inherited paternal antigens (IPAs) of the fetus, such as HLA, peptides of minor histocompatibilty antigens, and possibly onco-fetal antigens. The biological and pathological role of these pregnancy-induced immunological events is only understood in part. However, anti-IPA immunity in the mother persists for many decades after delivery and may reduce relapse in offspring with leukemia after HLA-haploidentical transplantation of maternal hematopoietic stem cells (HSC). We hypothesized that maternal anti-IPA immune elements cross the placenta and might confer a potent graft-versus-leukemia effect when cord blood (CB) is used in unrelated HSC transplantation. In a retrospective study of single-unit CB recipients with all gra

SUBMITTER: van Rood JJ 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3289309 | biostudies-literature | 2012 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature