Rabbit antithymocyte globulin induces rapid expansion of effector memory CD8 T cells without accelerating acute graft

Friedrich Wittenbecher1, Kathrin Rieger1, Mikalai Dziubianau2

  • 1Department of Hematology, Oncology and Tumor Immunology, Charité, Berlin, Germany.

Leukemia Research Reports
|December 28, 2013
PubMed

Rabbit antithymocyte globulin (Thymoglobulin(®)) is commonly used as graft-versus-host disease (GvHD) prophylaxis. Since we found similar total CD8 T cell numbers in patients with and without Thymoglobulin(®) therapy within the first six months after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, we have analyzed the reconstitution of the CD8 T cell compartment in detail. After T cell-depletion, higher and more sustained proliferative capacity of memory CD8 T cells resulted in their rapid expansion, whereas the fraction of naive CD8 T cells decreased. Importantly, this shift towards effector memory CD8 T cells did not accelerate the incidence of GvHD.