DR(BETA)-RFLP ANALYSIS OF SEROLOGICALLY DRW6 COMPATIBLE KIDNEY DONOR-RECIPIENT PAIRS

HLA-DR(beta)-RFLP analysis of serologically 1 or 2 DR-antigen compatib le renal allograft donors and recipients (D/R), selected for DRw6 anti gen (study group), or for other DR antigens (control group) and its co rrelation with the graft outcome revealed that: 1. In the study group where donors and recipients were selected for matching in DRw6 antigen , 8 out of ten D/R pairs turned out to be incorrectly classified due t o a number of mismatches in the HLA-DR locus RFLP analysis. In the con trol group, only 2 out of ten patients matched poorly by means of RFLP . The difference between the two groups was significant. 2. A signific antly higher incidence of rejection episodes was seen in the study gro up (2.7 +/- 1.5) than in the controls (1.4 +/- 0.5). 3. The total dose of methylprednisolone necessary for suppressing the rejection episode s was higher in the study group (6.0 +/- 2.9 g) than in the control on e (4.07 +/- 2.77 g), but the difference was not significant. 4. The gr aft survival 2 years after transplantation was 30% in the study group and 70% in the control group.