USE OF IMMUNOTOXINS TO INDUCE IMMUNE TOLERANCE TO PANCREATIC ISLET TRANSPLANTATION

摘要

The invention provides a method of treating diabetes in a subject, comprisingadministering to the diabetic subject an immunotoxin, thereby reducing thesubject's T-cell population, and administering to the subject pancreatic isletcells from a donor. The immune tolerance inducing treatment regimen, usedoptionally with adjunct immunosuppressive agents, prevents pancreatic isletcell rejection while maintaining long term islet cell function followingxenogeneic and allogeneic pancreatic islet cell transplantation. Thus, themethods of the present invention provide a means for treating diabetes,wherein the need for exogenous insulin or immunosuppressive agents isdecreased or eliminated. Also provided is a method of inhibiting a rejectionresponse of a transplant recipient, comprising administering an immunotoxinduring the peritransplant period, thereby transiently reducing the number of T-cell lymphocytes and promoting long-term survival of the transplant.