Heart Transplant Research Today is a free monthly online journal that collates and summarizes the latest research about Heart Transplant, including details on risks, prognosis, procedure, surgery, organ donation.

Prognostic values of soluble CD30 and CD30 gene polymorphisms in heart transplantation.

Frisaldi E, Conca R, Magistroni P, Fasano ME, Mazzola G, Patanè F, Zingarelli E, Dall'omo AM, Brusco A, Amoroso A

Department of Genetics, Biology and Biochemistry, University of Turin, Turin, Italy.

Pretransplant soluble CD30 (sCD30) is a predictor of kidney graft outcome. Its status as a predictor of heart transplant (HT) outcome has not been established. We have studied this question by assessing sCD30 levels and the number of (CCAT)n repeats of the microsatellite in the CD30 promoter region, which is able alone to repress gene transcription, in the sera of 83 HT patients and 77 of their donors. sCD30 was non-significantly increased in the patients, whereas there were no differences in the CD30 microsatellite allele frequencies. A negative correlation between the number of (CCAT)n and sCD30 levels was evident in the donors. Patients with pretransplant sCD30<or=30 U/ml displayed a significantly better survival. In conclusion, sCD30 levels are predictive of HT outcome.

Published 27 April 2006 in Transplantation, 81(8): 1153-6.
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