Or R, Weiss L, Amir G, Tejman S, Polliack A
Department of Bone Marrow Transplantation and Cancer Immunobiology Research Laboratory, Hadassah University Hospital and Hebrew University-Hadassah Medical School, Jerusalem, Israel.
Bone Marrow Transplant. 2000 Feb;25(3):263-6. doi: 10.1038/sj.bmt.1702107.
Fludarabine phosphate, a purine analogue currently used in the therapy of hematological malignancies, is known to cause immunosuppression and long-lasting T cell lymphopenia. In this study, the effect of fludarabine on murine graft-versus-host disease occurring after marrow transplantation across major and minor histocompatibility barriers was evaluated. Survival of (BALB/c x C57BL/6)F1 mice irradiated and transplanted across the major histocompatibility barrier with C57BL/6 spleen cells, and subsequently treated with fludarabine was significantly longer than that of the control animals (P < 0.0001). On the other hand, fludarabine had no effect on the graft-versus-host disease and survival of CBA mice transplanted by B10.BR and of BALB/c mice transplanted by B10.D2 spleen cells across the minor histocompatability barrier. The results indicate that in certain murine models, particularly a major mismatch, fludarabine has the potential to induce bilateral tolerance and stable chimerism after marrow transplantation. Bone Marrow Transplantation (2000) 25, 263-266.
