[PCR-RFLP analysis of epithelium in canine cryopreserved tracheal allograft]

In this study, we investigated whether the regenerated epithelia were recipient phenotype or donor phenotype using PCR-RFLP (polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism) method. Preoperatively 24 mongrel dogs were classified to 14 types by PCR-RFLP result from peripheral blood. The PCR-RFLP result of peripheral blood agreed to that of recipient epithelia. The cryopreserved tracheal allotransplantation was performed among the five pairs in which we could distinguish donor from recipient by PCR-RFLP. The epithelia of graft at 10 days after transplantation showed donor phenotype, but the epithelia at postoperative 20 days or more showed recipient phenotype. These results showed that allogenic epithelium remained in early post-transplant time and was gradually omitted. The epithelia migrated gradually from the anastomotic site, and the graft was covered with regenerated epithelia showing recipient phenotype within about 50 post-transplant days.