X-Message-Number: 11504
Date: Fri, 2 Apr 1999 00:29:27 -0800 (PST)
From: Doug Skrecky <>
Subject: glycerol preserved skin

Authors
  Richters CD.  Hoekstra MJ.  van Baare J.  du Pont JS.  Kamperdijk EW.
Institution
  Department of Cell Biology and Immunology, Faculty of Medicine, Vrije
  Universiteit, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
Title
  Immunogenicity of glycerol-preserved human
  cadaver skin in vitro.
Source
  Journal of Burn Care & Rehabilitation.  18(3):228-33, 1997 May-Jun.
Abstract
  Donor allograft skin preserved in 85% glycerol is used as a temporary
  coverage for large burn wounds. Glycerol treatment does not affect the
  structural integrity of the skin; cells are well preserved but dead. However,
  cells expressing major histocompatibility class II molecules can still be
  observed. In this study we investigated the mechanism underlying the clinical
  observation that glycerol-treated alloskin will be destroyed but after a
  prolonged period. We compared the in vitro immunogenicity of
  untreated and 85% glycerol-treated human skin cells. Human purified blood T
  cells did not proliferate when cultured with allogeneic treated skin cells,
  whereas untreated cells induced a distinct response. A moderate response was
  measured after adding T cells and viable antigen presenting cells, such as
  monocytes, to the allogeneic treated skin cells. However, the response on
  untreated skin cells was much higher. These results favor the suggestion that
  after transplantation of glycerol preserved skin is performed, an
  inflammatory process mediated by infiltrating host monocytes occurs rather
  than a rejection process mediated by T cells.

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