The aim of the present study was to demonstrate the mitogenic and differentiating properties of platelet-rich plasma releasates (PRPr) on human chondrocytes in mono- and three-dimensional cultures. In order to assess if PRPr supplementation could maintain the chondrocyte phenotype or at least inhibit the cell de-differentiation even after several days in culture, we performed a proteomic study on several cell cultures independently grown, for different periods of time, in culture medium with FCS, human serum (HS), and releasates obtained from PRP and platelet-poor plasma (PPP). We found that PRP treatment actually induced in chondrocytes the expression of proteins (some of which novel) involved in differentiation.

In experimental models, the chemokine CXCL10/IP-10 is required for graft failure owing to both acute and chronic rejection. In the present study, pretransplantation sera from 316 cadaver kidney graft recipients were tested for serum CXCL10 and CCL22/MDC levels by an ELISA assay. Kidney graft recipients with normally functioning grafts showed significantly lower serum CXCL10 levels than patients who experienced graft failure, whereas no differences for serum CCL22 levels were observed. After the assignment of all patients to four groups according to serum CXCL10 levels, the death-censored survival rates of grafts were 97.5%, 93.6%, 89.7%, 78.7% (p = = 0.0006) at 5 years, while no influence was observed on patient survival. Accordingly, patients with the highest CXCL10 levels showed an increased frequency and severity of rejection episodes. Serum C-reactive protein (CRP) level was also assayed in the same samples. Increase of serum CRP levels represented a predictive parameter for death, but not for graft failure. Multivariate analysis demonstrated that among the analyzed variables, CXCL10 had the highest predictive power of graft loss (RR 2.787). Thus, measurement of pretransplant serum CXCL10 levels might represent a clinically useful parameter to identify subjects who are at high risk of severe rejection and graft failure.

These results suggest that pretransplant serum CXCL10 levels greater than 150 pg/mL confer an increased risk of early, severe, AR and subsequent CAN, finally resulting in renal-allograft failure. This finding might be used for the individualization of immunosuppressive therapies.

The potential therapeutic value and versatility of platelet-derived products has recently stimulated the research and interest in the field of regenerative medicine. Platelet gels (PG), generated by thrombin-activated platelets, represent a new biotechnology for stimulation and acceleration of tissue healing and regeneration. However, despite the diffused and successful use of PG in clinical practice, a more detailed knowledge of the cellular and molecular mechanisms involved is required. In the present study, we show that human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) co-cultured with PG, in the presence of the inflammatory activator lipopolysaccharide, secreted higher amounts of pro-inflammatory and pro-angiogenic cytokines, such as interleukin (IL)-1beta, IL-6 and IL-8. In contrast, the release of the anti-angiogenic cytokines interferon-gamma and IL-12 was significantly reduced. In addition the production of the anti-inflammatory cytokine IL-10 was not affected by PG. Finally, hypoxia, a common feature of the healing tissue, potentiated the effects exerted by PG on the release of IL-1beta by PBMC. In conclusion, PG treatment reveals a unique capacity of articulating a pro-inflammatory and pro-angiogenic cytokine profile in human PBMC, which may partially explain the clinical success of PG application in a wide range of diseases.

A total of 1176 HLA-A,B,DR haplotypes were reconstructed by typing 303 unrelated families referred to our laboratory during the last seven years for the search of HLA identical sibs in view of bone marrow transplantation. A total of 614 different three-locus haplotypes were found. Most of them (83.6%) were present only once or twice, whereas 24/614 (3.9%) were found 6-28 times each. HLA-B44 was present in 4 of these most frequent haplotypes. HLA-B44 has been implicated as the molecular target for bone marrow allograft rejection. Therefore, a better knowledge of the HLA-B44 haplotype relationships might prove useful for the programming of registries of unrelated bone marrow donors. Eighty five serologically defined HLA-B44 unrelated subjects, either one or both parents from the above families, were subtyped by a high-resolution sequence-specific oligonucleotide probing approach. Moreover, 34 unrelated potential donors recruited for those patients that did not find a suitable donor among their siblings were subtyped also for HLA-B44. B*4403, which accounted for 47/85 (55.3%) serologically defined B44 alleles, appeared in strong, statistically significant, linkage disequilibrium with HLA-A29, -A23 and -DR7. On the other hand, B*4402, which covered virtually all other B44 alleles, showed prevalent gametic associations with HLA-A2 and HLA-A24. The linkage disequilibrium between HLA alleles is the key for the low frequency of HLA-B44 mismatches in donors selected as HLA-A,B,DRB1 identical to patients waiting for unrelated bone marrow transplantation. If a given patient presents unusual haplotypes, the chance of finding HLA-B44 mismatches may be higher because of the presence of different haplotype relationships in the donors.