Investigative ophthalmology & visual science
-
Invest. Ophthalmol. Vis. Sci. · Oct 1999
Role of CD4+ T cells in immunobiology of orthotopic corneal transplants in mice.
To determine, with the use of mice genetically deficient in expression of CD4 or CD8 molecules, which T cells are responsible for rejection of orthotopic corneal allografts in mice. ⋯ CD8+ T cells play little or no role in acute rejection of orthotopic corneal allografts. Instead, acute rejection is mediated almost exclusively by CD4+ T cells. Moreover, when corneal allografts survive for 8 weeks without acute rejection, CD4+ T cells promote donor-specific ACAID thereby insuring long-term graft acceptance.