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Regulatory T cell (Treg) therapy has the potential to induce transplantation tolerance so that immunosuppression and associated morbidity can be minimized. Alloantigen-reactive Tregs (arTregs) are more effective at preventing graft rejection than polyclonally expanded Tregs (PolyTregs) in murine models. We have developed a manufacturing process to expand human arTregs in short-term cultures using good manufacturing practice-compliant reagents. This process uses CD40L-activated allogeneic B cells to selectively expand arTregs followed by polyclonal restimulation to increase yield. Tregs expanded 100- to 1600-fold were highly alloantigen reactive and expressed the phenotype of stable Tregs. The alloantigen-expanded Tregs had a diverse TCR repertoire. They were more potent than PolyTregs in vitro and more effective at controlling allograft injuries in vivo in a humanized mouse model.

Transplantation is a successful treatment for end-stage organ failure. Despite improvements in short-term outcome, long-term survival remains suboptimal because of the morbidity and mortality associated with long-term use of immunosuppression. There is, therefore, a pressing need to devise protocols that induce tolerance in order to minimize or completely withdraw immunosuppression in transplant recipients. In this review we will discuss how regulatory T cells ( Tregs) came to be recognized as an attractive way to promote transplantation tolerance. We will summarize the preclinical data, supporting the importance of these cells in the induction and maintenance of immune tolerance and that provide the rationale for the isolation and expansion of these cells for cellular therapy. We will also describe the data from the first clinical trials, using Tregs to inhibit graft- versus-host disease ( GVHD) after haematopoietic stem cell transplantation and will address both the challenges and opportunities in human Treg cell therapy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]