The high frequency of allogeneic reactive CD8(+) T cells in human and their resistance to immunosuppression might be one of the reasons why successful tolerance-inducing strategies in rodents have failed in primates. Studies on the requirement for T-helper cells in priming CD8(+) T-cell responses have led to disparate findings. Recent studies have reported CD8(+)-mediated allograft rejection in...

Mycophenolate mofetil (MMF, CellCept R © ) has become the most frequently used immunosuppressive drug in kidney transplant recipients [1]. Since its approval for the prevention of acute rejection after kidney transplantation in 1995 in the USA and in 1996 in Europe, the use of azathioprine has been rapidly diminishing, giving way to the use of MMF. A second formulation of mycophenolic acid (MPA...

BACKGROUND After renal transplantation, patients with insufficient graft function may require phosphate binders. It is still unknown if sevelamer, a new calcium-free phosphate binder, interferes with the uptake of immunosuppressants. We studied its effects on the pharmacokinetics of cyclosporin A (CsA) and mycophenolate mofetil. METHODS We examined 10 adults and eight children with stable ren...

BACKGROUND Therapeutic drug monitoring for mycophenolic acid (MPA) is increasingly being advocated. The present therapeutic range relates to the 12-hour area under the serum concentration time profile (AUC).However, this is a cumbersome, tedious, cost restricting procedure. Is it possible to reduce this sampling period? AIM To compare the AUC from a reduced sampling strategy with the full 12-...

The introduction of the immunosuppressive agent mycophenolate mofetil as a standard-dose drug has resulted in a reduced risk of rejection after renal transplantation and improved graft survival compared to azathioprine. The favorable balance between efficacy and safety has made mycophenolate mofetil a cornerstone immunosuppressive drug, and the vast majority of newly transplanted patients are n...

PurposeMycophenolic Acid (MPA) is the most used anti-proliferative agent after lung transplantation, but its pharmacokinetic (PK) variability has limited therapeutic drug monitoring. The purpose of this study was to integrate genetic and clinical factors associated with MPA PK traditional measurements create a clinically feasible, more accurate exposure estimation tool.MethodsWe performed analy...

Penicillium mycotoxins are natural contaminants found in grains, crops, fruits, and fermented products, especially during post harvest as well as storage periods. Contamination by individual and combinations of these toxins is likely to compromise food quality and safety. In this study, the potential immunotoxicity of citrinin (CIT), ochratoxin A (OTA), patulin (PAT), mycophenolic acid (MPA) an...

OBJECTIVE To investigate the effect of mycophenolic acid (MPA) on the proliferation of rat pulmonary microvascular endothelial cells (PMVECs) and on the secretion of endothelin-1 (ET-1) and interleukin-6 (IL-6) by these cells. METHODS Rat PMVECs were treated with five different final concentrations of MPA (0, 0.1, 1, 10 and 100 μM). The fetal bovine serum-induced proliferation of the PMVECs w...

BACKGROUND Mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) is an effective posttransplantation immunosuppressive agent used in combination with cyclosporin A (CsA) or tacrolimus (Tc). An increase in plasma mycophenolic acid (MPA) has been shown in patients receiving Tc-MMF combination therapy compared with CsA-MMF combination therapy at the same dose of MMF. The aim of this prospective study was to assess the phar...