Stem Cell Research and Regenerative Medicine

Tissue Transplantation Research Articles

Tissue transplantation therapy, which has been utilized for over 50 years, is a rapidly developing field carrying with it great promise for ameliorating or curing many diseases. One of its drawbacks, however, is the potential for donor-to-recipient disease transmission. This risk is greatly reduced by excluding donors at risk of carrying infection and by testing the donor for transmissible infectious disease. Aseptic surgical technique in a quality environment, when removing the tissue from the donor, when processing and storing the tissue and during implantation is critically important to prevent bacterial and fungal contamination. Non-viable tissue grafts such as bone can undergo disinfection and sterilization steps. During the past two decades the disease transmission risk associated with tissue transplantation has been greatly reduced by implementation of standards set by professional organizations, such as the American Association of Tissue Banks, the European Association of Tissue Banks , the Eye Bank Association of America , and governmental regulations. However, the incidence of transplant-transmitted infection is unknown, and the studies needed to determine this have not been performed. Cadaveric donations  and clinical transplants of cornea, bone, skin, heart valve, and other tissue allografts in the USA greatly exceed that of organs  Organ transplantation flourished in the early 1980s following the discovery and introduction of cyclosporin as an effective immune suppressant.  

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