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Updated: Oct 26, 2025
Murine Cervical Aortic Transplantation Model using a Modified Non-Suture Cuff Technique
Published on: November 2, 2019
Cardiac allograft vasculopathy: current review and future research directions
Jordan S Pober1, Sharon Chih2, Jon Kobashigawa3
1Department of Immunobiology, Pathology and Dermatology, Yale School of Medicine, 10 Amistad Street, New Haven CT 06520-8089, USA.
Insights
Cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV) is a major cause of heart transplant rejection. This review covers CAV
Area of Science:
- Cardiovascular Medicine
- Immunology
- Transplantation Science
Background:
- Cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV) is a significant immune-mediated vascular complication following heart transplantation.
- It is the primary cause of late graft loss, impairing blood flow to the transplanted heart.
- Similar vasculopathies affect other organ transplants and share features with other immune-mediated conditions.
Purpose of the Study:
- To provide a comprehensive overview of cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV).
- To detail the incidence, diagnosis, and pathological vascular remodeling in CAV.
- To explore immune and non-immune factors in CAV pathogenesis, current treatments, and future research directions.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing literature on cardiac allograft vasculopathy.
- Analysis of pathological characteristics of vascular remodeling.
- Examination of immunological and non-immunological pathogenic mechanisms.
- Assessment of current therapeutic strategies and identification of research gaps.
Main Results:
- CAV involves pathological immune-mediated vascular remodeling in transplanted hearts.
- Impaired perfusion due to CAV is the leading cause of late graft failure.
- Understanding CAV requires considering its occurrence in various organ transplants and shared features with other vasculopathies.
Conclusions:
- CAV is a complex condition with significant implications for long-term heart transplant success.
- Further research is needed to elucidate its pathogenesis and improve therapeutic interventions.
- A comprehensive understanding of CAV is crucial for advancing transplantation medicine.
Abstract:
Cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV) is a pathologic immune-mediated remodelling of the vasculature in transplanted hearts and, by impairing perfusion, is the major cause of late graft loss. Although best understood following cardiac transplantation, similar forms of allograft vasculopathy occur in other vascularized organ grafts and some features of CAV may be shared with other immune-mediated vasculopathies. Here, we describe the incidence and diagnosis, the nature of the vascular remodelling, immune and non-immune contributions to pathogenesis, current therapies, and future areas of research in CAV.
