HLA genetics, Transplantation and Autoimmune diseases Flashcards
what does class III region of the HLA gene complex do
Codes for lots of genes including those encoding C2 & C4 complement components
what does the class I region of the HLA gene complex do
codes for A, B, C locus
What does the class II region of the HLA gene complex do
codes for DP, DQ, DR
How do you define a haplotype
- the team of alleles encoded on a short section of one chromosome
describe how the haplotype passes on to the child
- A single haplotype will have been inherited from one parent and will usually be passed on intact to offspring if the segment of chromosome is short enough
- the longer the segment of chromosome considered the more likely it is that crossovers will occur in the formation of the gametes and the haplotype passed onto the child will be a mixture of one parents two haplotypes
What is linkage disequilibrium
- idea that two alleles that are close together stay together
What are the two explanations of linkage
- founder effect
2. advantageous combination
Describe how the founder effect works
- All started off in small populations
- initially there are a small members of the species
- if a little band went of then there are few members so there might be a few males and a few females
- the males can pass on the genes more quickly and populate with similar genes
Describe how advantageous combination works
- there are advantageous combinations of alleles
define autograft
- a graft of tissue given back to the same person e.g. skin in burn victims or bone marrow in stem cells
define isograft
- graft between two identical siblings
define allograft
- Graft between two numbers of the same species who are not identical and may be related
define heterograft/xenograft
- Graft between two members of different species e.g. pigs heart to human, pig heart valves
Kidney transplants are usually
allografts
What can cause rejection of kidney transplants
- Antibodies - ABO blood groups, Class 1 HLA molecules
- T lymphocytes - interact with foreign HLA and peptide complexes
What kind of rejection are there in kidney transplants
- Hyperacute rejection - rejection immediately within minutes, hours or up to about 4 days
- Acute rejection - rejection from 5 days to 3 months
- Chronic rejection - rejection from here afterwards
What causes hyperacute rejection in kidney transplants
- Hyperacute rejection is antibody mediated with complement activation e.g. in xenografts it may be alternative complement pathway
What causes acute rejection
- it may be antibody or more often T lymphocyte mediated
What causes chronic rejection
- May be antibody or T lymphocyte mediated, muddled by the recurrence of the original disease or infection
cadaveric kidneys do less well
than live donor kidneys
- live donor kidneys survive longer than kidneys from a dead person
How do you avoid transplant rejection
- do not do the transplant if the recipient has antibodies against the donor HLA molecules
- match the donor and recipient for HLA alleles
- use anti-rejection therapy
- always use ABO compatible donors
- screen all patients on transplant waiting list for anti HLA antibodies
- perform a cross match between donor cells and recipient serum
In what case do people make antibodies against foreign HLA
People do not make antibodies against foreign HLA unless they have been sensitised
- blood transfusion
- pregnancy
- previous graft
How do you match donors for HLA alleles
- Try to match for A, B, and DR loci
- in the unrelated situation you are matching for the broad antigen groups - the first two digits of the alleles name
- in the related situation you will be matching for whole haplotypes
What are the drugs that are taken in anti-rejection therapy
- Glucocorticosteroids such as prednisolone
- immunosupressives e.g. azathioprine and mycophenolate
- immunosuppressives such as ciclosporine and tacrolimus which interrupt the signalling within T lymphocytes
- monoclonal and polyclonal antibodies which deplete T lymphocytes
All of the anti rejection therapies can ..
increase susceptibility to infection
in bone marrow transplant what cell are you worried about in rejection
- antibody mediated rejection does not matter
- all problems are T lymphocyte mediated
- there is no need for serum screening of recipients or for cross matching
what rejection can you have in bone marrow transplant
- There is host versus graft rejection
- graft versus host rejection
In bone marrow transplant in graft versus host what happens
- Donor T lymphocytes react against host HLA and peptide complexes
What is the worse reaction in graft versus host rejection in bone marrow transplant
- severe skin rash
- multi organ involvement and failure
- death
What kind of matching do you want in bone marrow transplant
Matching is very important
- in identical twins and 2 haplotype match are acceptable
- identical twins will not require anti-rejection therapy but there is more chance of recurrence of leukaemia if leukaemia is why the transplant is being done
- in unrelated donors detailed matching of the alleles is desirable
- need a bit of rejection to prevent recurrence of leukaemia
How do you prevent host versus graft and graft versus host
- In autografts there are not any graft versus host and host versus graft = this is because you can use the patients purified stem cells with the malignant cells removed
- in allografts- the T lymphocytes can be depleted from the donated marrow or purified stem cells can be used
- anti-rejection therapy is used but can be stopped
define hypersensitivity
- Damage to the body by its own immune system
What is type I hypersensitivity
- IgE mediated release of histamine from mast cells/basophils
- includes hayfever, asthma, anaphylactic shock
What does atopy mean
- Some people genetically predispose to making IgE to common environmental antigens - atopy