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CUTTING EDGE |
(1,3)Gal Antibody Plus Complement in Gal o/o Mice1


*
Austin Research Institute, Austin and Repatriation Medical Centre, Heidelberg, Australia; and
Walter and Eliza Hall Institute, Royal Melbourne Hospital, Parkville, Australia
Hyperacute rejection due to Gal
(1,3)Gal (Gal) Ab plus
complement (C') is a major problem in xenografting vascularized organs
from pigs to primates, but the fate of neovascularized xeno islets is
unclear. Nonendocrine islet cells are Gal+, and there is a
large rise in Gal Abs after transplantation, but graft remnants persist
for some days in monkeys and humans. To define the role of
Gal Ab
plus C' in porcine islet graft rejection, cultured porcine fetal islets
were grafted to mice lacking the
(1,3)galactosyltransferase gene.
Anti-Gal Ab plus C' did not cause islet damage or rejection in mice
lacking the
(1,3)galactosyltransferase gene, even when additional Ab
plus C' was given; in addition, hyperimmune mice (titer >1/20,000) did
not reject pig islets, showing that islets are resistant to Gal Ab plus
C'. However, islets can be destroyed by polyclonal mouse anti-pig
Abs. Thus, the focus of islet xenografting should not be on Gal Ab plus
C'.
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