CYTOMEGALOVIRUS IN TRANSPLANTATION - NEW DEVELOPMENTS

The control of cytomegalovirus infection and disease continues to be a major problem in transplantation and different strategies have been d eveloped to reduce its incidence. Early diagnosis of infection soon af ter transplantation, using molecular tools such as the polymerase chai n reaction, have resulted in successful clinical trials using the stra tegy of pre-emptive therapy. Adoptive transfer of immune cells, which are predominantly the cytomegalovirus-specific cytotoxic T lymphocytes , into transplant recipients has been shown to restore effective immun ity. A vaccine preparation has been in development aimed at preventing primary infections in allograft recipients though effective protectio n has yet to be shown. The mechanisms of viral pathogenesis in chronic graft rejection remain unclear; however, recent contributions from th e field of cell biology have increased our understanding of possible p rocesses which have the potential for application in the field of gene therapy for the treatment of disease. (C) Rapid Science Publishers IS SN 0954-6928.