Cardiac allograft rejection in the absence of macrophage migration inhibitory factor.

摘要

BACKGROUND: Macrophage migration inhibitory factor (MIF) is a secreted proinflammatory lymphokine essential for elicitation of delayed-type hypersensitivity (DTH) reactions in vivo. We tested whether MIF blockade-absence affected acute or chronic murine cardiac allograft rejection. METHODS: Wild-type (WT) C57BL/6 (B6) mice underwent transplantation with BALB/c hearts with or without blocking anti-MIF antibody, and MIF knockout (KO) B6 mice underwent transplantation with MIF KO BALB/c hearts. Chronic immune injury was induced in WT and KO recipients using donor-specific transfusion and anti-CD40L antibody. RESULTS: Unexpectedly, the blockade or genetic absence of MIF did not prolong graft survival even if recipient T-cell cytotoxicity was additionally impaired. The histologic manifestations of acute and chronic immune injury to the allograft were similar between groups. CONCLUSIONS: MIF is not required for acute or chronic allograft rejection in mice. The findings raise questions about the role of DTH as an important mediator of cardiac allograft injury.