LSF-1 may modulate the indirect allorecognition pathway to delay allograft rejection

Liver suppressor factor one (LSF-1) is a 40-kDa immunosuppressive protein in the serum of rats 60 days after orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) between the non-rejector combination of DA donors into PVG recipients. In the present study, a polyclonal anti-LSF-1 antibody was used to detect the lymphoid cell populations expressing LSF-1 epitopes in several transplant models. In this study we examined cell samples acquired from rats that had undergone OLT in syngeneic, rejecting or non-rejecting combinations. Flow cytometry indicated that the polyclonal antibody reacts specifically with an epitope present on a CD4 CD11b positive cell of recipient origin. In the first 3 weeks after transplant there is a large increase in the number of these cells isolated from the spleens and livers of rats in tolerogenic OLT model, which correlates with prolongation of allograft survival. In the rejector and isograft models of OLT there is a minimal change in the expression of the LSF-1 N-terminal pep epitope. These results suggest that these recipient CD4 CD11b cells may have a critical role in the formation of transplant tolerance by interfering with the indirect pathway of allorecognition via as yet undetermined mechanisms. The increased expression of the LSF-1 N-terminal pep epitope on liver leukocytes 14 days after partial hepatectomy indicates a natural role of LSF-1 in the process of liver regeneration after insult or injury. © 2002 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.