Study of dendritic cells, T cells and NK cells subsets in umbilical cord blood transplant recipients

Abstract

Umbilical cord blood transplantation (UCBT) is a valuable alternative stem cell source which has been increasingly used for hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT). Natural killer cells (NK cells) and dendritic cells (DC) have their own recovery properties, and modifications on these paths may alter transplant outcomes when bone marrow (BM) or peripheral blood (PB) are used as source of stem cells. Aims: 1) To characterize dendritic, T cells and NK cells recovery after UCBT; 2) To evaluate the impact of dendritic cells, T cells and NK cells subpopulations' reconstitution on the main transplant outcomes; 3) To compare the kinetics of reconstitution of dendritic cells, T cells and NK cells between UCBT and mobilized PB HSCT (PBSCT) recipients. Methods: Forty patients undergoing unrelated allogeneic UCBT, 20 patients undergoing BMT, and 20 patients undergoing PBSCT will be enrolled. Serial blood samples from transplanted patients will be collected at specified times after the transplant. Twenty PB samples from normal volunteers will also be analyzed. Dendritic cells, T cells and NK cells subpopulations will be quantified by multiparametric flow cytometry. Patients will be followed for one year and quantification will be correlated to the following transplant outcomes: engraftment, mortality, relapse, progression free survival and GVHD. (AU)