Background: As transcriptional profiling techniques appear to provide a useful means to evaluate the allograft response, we have now initiated an attempt to use proteomics to examine the allograft response.
Methods: To this end, we have evaluated the use of Protein Chip technology, coupled with bioinformatics analysis towards discovery of allograft response biomarkers in a mouse skin transplant model. To compare samples obtained from acutely rejecting allograft recipients at days 7, 9, and 21, we treated one group with a potent antirejection regimen. Mean survival time in the fully MHC-mismatched skin graft model using this protocol is more than 100 days. We also studied recipients of nontreated syngenetic grafts. We applied Protein Chip technology toward discovery of allograft response markers in this model.
Results: At days 7 and 9, before the clinical appearance of rejection at day 10, several protein biomarker candidates were detected, based on their molecular mass that clearly differentiated between rejection and the nonrejection groups.
Conclusions: Protein profiling of serum as a means to characterize the allografts response of a given host deserves further testing in clinical studies.