Organ Transplantation and Adaptive Immunity

• Lung Transplantation
• Heart Transplantation
• Liver Transplantation
• Kidney Transplants
• Bone Marrow Transplantation
• Pancreas Transplantation
• Artificial Organ Transplantation

Session chair : Osman Ahmed, Mrh Tullamore, Ireland

When a person requires an organ transplant, it is due to the failure or malfunction of one of their organs. An organ transplant can extend a person's life and help individuals suffering from a chronic illness to enjoy a normal life. If a person does not receive an organ transplant, they will most likely die. Every day, on average, 20 individuals die while waiting for an organ transplant. In some circumstances, an organ transplant enhances a person's quality of life, such as when dialysis is no longer required or when a cornea transplant restores sight. Because persons who require organ transplants usually have life-threatening conditions, they may be severely sick prior to the procedure. Transplanting organs is a complicated procedure that necessitates a close match between the recipient and the donor. For example, the donor and recipient must have matching blood types. Other aspects may be relevant depending on the organ in question. Donors and recipients of kidneys, for example, must have appropriate antibodies and body sizes. The mammalian immune system is a highly complicated system that evolved over millions of years in response to evolutionary stressors posed by cohabitation with microorganisms. The major histocompatibility complex (MHC) molecules expressed on the surface of donor cells (allo-MHC) are the primary target of the immune response to the graft in organ transplantation; this is a sort of adaptive immunity