Project 170809

Organ transplantation is a life-saving procedure for many individuals. Unfortunately, rejection of transplanted organs by the recipient immune system is a major hurdle to the long-term success of this procedure. T cells are specialized cells within the immune system that recognize and damage transplanted organs, thereby playing an important role in causing organ transplant rejection. For this reason, it is important to understand how T cell responses are controlled in this setting in order to develop ways to increase the long-term acceptance of transplanted organs. In general, the extent of T cell activation is controlled by the amount of both cell proliferation and death. A considerable amount is known about how T cell proliferation is regulated during transplant rejection. However, relatively little is known about how T cell death and survival are controlled in transplanted organs, and how this biological process contributes to T cell reactions in this setting. Using human cells and tissues, the current work will investigate how T cell survival and persistence is regulated in transplanted arteries, and the contribution of this to organ transplant rejection. All together, the work will provide unique insight into the mechanisms by which T cells cause transplant rejection, with a particular emphasis on biological processes occurring in humans.

using human cells and tissues to investigate the role of nitric oxide and thioredoxins in T cell survival during transplant rejection