The Molecular and Cellular Immunology Core: The Emory Transplant Center and this Consortium benefits from an integrated approach to performing nonhuman primate (NHP) transplant tolerance research. The hub of this integration is the integrated Molecular and Cellular Immunology Core (MClC), which coordinates and streamlines all common assays and procedures, as well as the NHP procurement and typing needs for all members of the ETC. The MClC is comprised of five interacting elements: (1) The MHC Immunogenetics and Typing Core. (2) The Flow Cytometry Core. (3) The NHP Histopathology Core. (4) The Molecular Immunology and Virology Core and (5) The Functional Protective Immunity Core. Each Core addresses a critical need for the conduct of the complex experiments that are proposed in each of the projects and promotes collaboration between investigators. As such, the development of these integrated services has significantly increased the efficiency and the rigor with which our group is able to execute complex NHP transplantation tolerance research.
Renal transplantation represents first-line therapy for patients with end-stage renal disease, with over 16,000 transplants being performed each year. While most patients initially do well post-transplant, they almost invariably face significant toxicities, including off-target complications of non-specific immunosuppression and the constant risk of chronic rejection. The ultimate answer for all of these issues is immune tolerance induction. This application seeks to define clinically-relevant tolerance-induction strategies, which could improve the lives of tens of thousands of transplant patients each year.
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