ATC Abstracts

American Transplant Congress abstracts

  • Home
  • Meetings Archive
    • 2022 American Transplant Congress
    • 2021 American Transplant Congress
    • 2020 American Transplant Congress
    • 2019 American Transplant Congress
    • 2018 American Transplant Congress
    • 2017 American Transplant Congress
    • 2016 American Transplant Congress
    • 2015 American Transplant Congress
    • 2013 American Transplant Congress
  • Keyword Index
  • Resources
    • 2021 Resources
    • 2016 Resources
      • 2016 Welcome Letter
      • ATC 2016 Program Planning Committees
      • ASTS Council 2015-2016
      • AST Board of Directors 2015-2016
    • 2015 Resources
      • 2015 Welcome Letter
      • ATC 2015 Program Planning Committees
      • ASTS Council 2014-2015
      • AST Board of Directors 2014-2015
      • 2015 Conference Schedule
  • Search

Allograft Repopulating Recipient B Cells after Human Intestinal Transplantation and Their Association with Donor Specific Antibody Secretion and Rejection

E. Waffarn1, J. Fu1, K. Frangaj1, W. Meng2, A. M. Rosenfeld2, M. Li3, K. Rodgers1, R. Vasilescu3, E. T. Luning Prak2, A. Griesemer1, T. Kato4, M. Martinez5, M. Sykes1

1Columbia Center for Translational Immunology, Department of Medicine, Columbia University, New York, NY, 2Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA, 3Department of Pathology, Columbia University, New York, NY, 4Department of Surgery, Columbia University, New York, NY, 5Department of Pediatrics, Columbia University, New York, NY

Meeting: 2020 American Transplant Congress

Abstract number: 223

Keywords: Alloantibodies, B cells, Intestinal transplantation, Rejection

Session Information

Session Name: Plenary Session II

Session Type: Plenary Session

Date: Sunday, May 31, 2020

Session Time: 9:59am-10:40am

 Presentation Time: 10:30am-10:37am

Location: Main Channel

*Purpose: Alloantibodies produced by recipient B cells are associated with rejection after intestinal transplantation (ITx) and negatively impact patient and graft survival. However, the dynamics of recipient B cell repopulation of intestinal allografts, their phenotypic changes, and their roles in mediating rejection locally within the allograft are not yet defined. We hypothesized that the early kinetics of gut tissue resident B cell replacement may shape local and systemic recipient B cell responses after ITx, including donor-specific antibody (DSA) development and allograft rejection.

*Methods: Using spectral flow cytometry and B cell receptor (BCR) heavy chain sequencing, immune characterization was performed on serial endoscopic surveillance biopsies of the intestinal allograft and peripheral blood from 7 consenting ITx recipients. Findings were correlated with clinical pathology results and serum DSA.

*Results: In intestinal allografts, recipient B cells replaced graft donor lamina propria B cells over a 15 day – 33 month period. This process tended to be faster in ITx recipients developing DSA in the first 90 days after transplant and in recipients of young (<1 year of age) graft donors. In the first 200 days post-ITx, recipient plasma cells (PCs) appeared in grafts of 2/2 isolated intestinal transplant (iITx) recipients with both cellular rejection and DSA, but in 0/5 multivisceral transplant (MVTx) recipients without both conditions. In an iITx patient with chronic rejection, Luminex single antigen bead testing of cultured recipient B cells and PCs from the graft mucosa identified secreted IgG with a specificity matching one of the DSA detected in serum during rejection. Tracking the recipient BCR repertoire in the graft over time revealed that recipient clones identified in the allograft overlapped more frequently with clones from native GI tract samples than with those from the peripheral blood.

*Conclusions: Rapid repopulation of the intestinal allograft by recipient B cells may be associated with rejection and de novo DSA. Recipient B cells residing within the allograft are a potential local source of DSA and may populate the allograft from GI tract-associated networks. Further identification of recipient B cell specificities and their clonal distribution during rejection may enhance our understanding of how B cells participate in organ-specific alloimmunity in ITx.

  • Tweet
  • Email
  • Print

To cite this abstract in AMA style:

Waffarn E, Fu J, Frangaj K, Meng W, Rosenfeld AM, Li M, Rodgers K, Vasilescu R, Prak ETLuning, Griesemer A, Kato T, Martinez M, Sykes M. Allograft Repopulating Recipient B Cells after Human Intestinal Transplantation and Their Association with Donor Specific Antibody Secretion and Rejection [abstract]. Am J Transplant. 2020; 20 (suppl 3). https://atcmeetingabstracts.com/abstract/allograft-repopulating-recipient-b-cells-after-human-intestinal-transplantation-and-their-association-with-donor-specific-antibody-secretion-and-rejection/. Accessed May 11, 2025.

« Back to 2020 American Transplant Congress

Visit Our Partner Sites

American Transplant Congress (ATC)

Visit the official site for the American Transplant Congress »

American Journal of Transplantation

The official publication for the American Society of Transplantation (AST) and the American Society of Transplant Surgeons (ASTS) »

American Society of Transplantation (AST)

An organization of more than 3000 professionals dedicated to advancing the field of transplantation. »

American Society of Transplant Surgeons (ASTS)

The society represents approximately 1,800 professionals dedicated to excellence in transplantation surgery. »

Copyright © 2013-2025 by American Society of Transplantation and the American Society of Transplant Surgeons. All rights reserved.

Privacy Policy | Terms of Use | Cookie Preferences