Organ Transplantation Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Organ Transplantation, including details on risks, prognosis, procedure, surgery.

Heme oxygenase-1 is essential for and promotes tolerance to transplanted organs.

Yamashita K, Ollinger R, McDaid J, Sakahama H, Wang H, Tyagi S, Csizmadia E, Smith NR, Soares MP, Bach FH

Immunobiology Research Center, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts 02215, USA.

This investigation focused on obtaining a further understanding of the role of heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) in tolerance induction. Hearts from C57BL/6 (H-2b) mice survived long-term when transplanted into BALB/c (H-2d) recipients treated with the tolerance-inducing regimen of anti-CD40L antibody (MR-1) plus donor-specific transfusion (DST). Grafts did not, however, survive long-term in (HO-1-/-) recipients given the same treatment. Similarly, long-term survival induced by DST was ablated when HO-1 activity was blocked by zinc protoporphyrin IX (ZnPPIX). We further asked whether modulation of HO-1 expression/activity could be used to promote the induction of graft tolerance. DST alone (day 0) failed to promote any prolongation of survival of DBA/2 (H-2d) hearts transplanted into B6AF1 (H-2(b,k/d)) recipients. However, long-term survival and (dominant peripheral) tolerance were readily induced when DST was combined with induction of HO-1 expression by cobalt protoporphyrin IX (CoPPIX). HO-1 induction plus DST led to a significant up-regulation of Foxp3, TGF-beta, IL-10, and CTLA4, which suggests a prominent role for CD4+CD25+ regulatory T cells (Tregs). In fact, the tolerogenic effect of HO-1 plus DST was dependent on CD4+CD25+ Tregs as suggested by adoptively transferring these cells into irradiated recipients under various regimens. Taken together, these findings show that expression of HO-1 in a graft recipient can be essential for long-term graft survival and for induction of tolerance and that modulation of HO-1 expression/activity can be used therapeutically to synergize in the generation of graft tolerance.

Published 3 April 2006 in FASEB J, 20(6): 776-8.
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