Intercellular cell adhesion molecule-1 and selectin ligands in acute cardiac allograft rejection: a study on gene-deficient mouse models

Cell adhesion molecules and their ligands are essential for regulating lymphocyte recirculation and leucocyte emigration into an inflamed or injured tissue. Vascular endothelial selectins as mediators of leucocyte rolling and intercellular cell adhesion molecule-1 (ICAM-1) have been found to be up-regulated on activated endothelium during acute allograft rejection. This study was designed to investigate whether ICAM-1 or selectin-ligand deficiency, or a combination of both, affected graft survival during acute cardiac allograft rejection. To this goal, we performed cardiac transplantation using mice deficient in genes for ICAM-1 or α(1,3)fucosyltransferase Fuc-TVII, representing a model for general absence of selectin-ligand expression, and a newly developed strain with a double mutation in Fuc-TVII and ICAM-1 alleles. Transplantation of a heart from ICAM-1 −/− or Fuc-TVII/ICAM-1 double-mutated mice into allogeneic recipients resulted in limited (2–2.5 days) but nevertheless significant prolongation of the graft survival (P