Lower expression of NOTCH components in peripheral blood mononuclear cells of allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplant patients

ABSTRACT Introduction: Chronic graft-versus-host disease (cGvHD) not only remains the main cause of late mortality after allogeneic hematopoietic cell transplant, but also has the capacity of causing severe organ impairment in those who survive. The Notch, a highly conserved ligand-receptor pathway, is involved in many immunological processes, including inflammatory and regulatory responses. Recently, mouse models have shown that the blockage of canonical Notch signaling prevents GvHD. Objective and Method: Due to the lack of data on the Notch pathway in human chronic GvHD, we sought to study the expression of NOTCH components in primary samples of patients who received allo-HCT and presented active cGvHD or a long-term clinical tolerance to cGvHD. Results: Our results showed a significantly lower expression of NOTCH components in both groups that received allo-HCT, independently of their cGvHD status, when compared to healthy controls. Conclusion: Moreover, there were no differences in gene expression levels between the active cGvHD and clinically tolerant groups. To our knowledge, this is one of the first studies performed in human primary samples and our data indicate that much remains to be learned regarding NOTCH signaling as a new regulator of GvHD.

Need for hemodialysis in patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation: risk factors and survival in a retrospective cohort

ABSTRACT Introduction: Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation (allo-HSCT) patients are exposed to acute and chronic nephrotoxic events (drugs, hypotension, infections, and microangiopathy). The need for hemodialysis (HD) may be associated with high mortality rates. However, the risk factors and clinical impact of HD are poorly understood. Aim: To analyze survival and risk factors associated with HD in allo-HSCT Patients and methods: single-center cohort study 185 (34 HD cases versus 151 controls) consecutive adult allo-HSCT patients from 2007-2019. We performed univariate statistical analysis, then logistic regression and competing risk regression were used to multivariate analysis. Survival was analyzed by Kaplan-Meier and Cox proportional-hazards models. Results: The one-year HD cumulative incidence was 17.6%. Univariate analysis revealed that HD was significantly associated with male gender, age (p 0.056), haploidentical donor, grade II-IV acute GVHD, polymyxin B, amikacin, cidofovir, microangiopathy, septic shock (norepinephrine use) and steroid exposure. The median days of glycopeptides exposure (teicoplanin/vancomycin) was 16 (HD) versus 10 (no HD) (p 0.088). In multivariate analysis, we found: norepinephrine (hazard ratio, HR:3.3; 95% confidence interval, 95%CI:1.2-8.9; p 0.024), cidofovir drug (HR:11.0; 95%CI:4.6 - 26.0; p < 0.001), haploidentical HSCT (HR:1.94; 95%CI:0.81-4.65; p 0.14) and Age (HR:1.01; 95%CI: 0.99-1.03; p 0.18). The HD group had higher mortality rate (HR:6.68; 95% CI: 4.1-10.9; p < 0.001). Conclusion: HD was associated with decreased survival in allo-HSCT. Carefully use of nephrotoxic drugs and improving immune reconstitution could reduce severe infections (shock) and patients requiring cidofovir, which taken together may result in lower rates of HD, therefore improving survival.

Prognostic factors and impact of CMV reactivation on acute myeloid leukemia patients after HLA-matched myeloablative allogeneic stem cell transplantation in a high CMV prevalence country

ABSTRACT Introduction: Relapse of acute myeloid leukemia (AML) after allogeneic stem cell transplantation (allo-SCT) leads to dismal outcomes. This study aimed to identify high-risk patients and explore the effects of cytomegalovirus (CMV) reactivation in a high CMV-seropositive population. Methods: The study involved a single-center retrospective cohort in Thailand, analyzing clinical risk factors and CMV-mediated immune responses, correlated with transplant outcomes in AML patients. Results: Eighty-five patients with AML in complete remission (CR) undergoing HLA-matched myeloablative allo-SCT between 2011 and February 2021 were enrolled. The relapse rate was 27.1% with the median time of 7 months after transplantation. The 3-year relapse-free-survival (RFS) and overall-survival (OS) were 72.2% and 80.8%, respectively. The disease status (>CR1) and absence of chronic graft-versus-host disease (cGVHD) were independently significant adverse prognostic factors of RFS and OS. Ninety-two percent of recipient-donor pairs were both CMV seropositive. The CMV reactivation occurred in 54.1% of the patients. The clinically significant CMV infection rate was 49.4%. No CMV syndrome/disease or CMV-related mortality occurred. One-year cumulative incidence of relapse among CMV-reactivation and non-reactivation groups were 14.3% and 25.6%, respectively, without a statistically significant difference. Transplantation-related mortality was 11.1%. Conclusions: The transplantation beyond CR1 and absence of cGVHD are powerful prognostic factors associated with inferior RFS and OS. In a high CMV prevalence country, there appears to be no impact of CMV reactivation on relapse in AML patients undergoing an allo-SCT.

Advances in conditioning regimens for allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in elderly patients with acute myeloid leukemia / 中华器官移植杂志

Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) is a sole viable treatment for acute myeloid leukemia (AML). As the median age of AML is approaching 68 years and the global population is aging, allo-HSCT for is becoming more vital for elderly AML patients (60 years and over). Conditioning regimen is important in determining the clinical outcomes of post-allo-HSCT patients.This review summarized the classic and latest conditioning regimens and evaluated their respective clinical outcomes.Clinicians may appreciate the advantages of each conditioning regimen and formulate optimal options for elderly AML patients.

Risk factors of hemorrhagic cystitis after allo-HSCT and therapeutic effects of early transfusion of umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells / 中华器官移植杂志

Objective:To explore the clinical efficacy and risk factors of umbilical cord mesenchymal stem cells (UCMSCs) infusion at an early stage (i.e.gross hematuria) for hemorrhagic cystitis (HC) after allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT).Methods:The relevant clinical data were retrospectively reviewed for 300 patients undergoing allo-HSCT from January 2016 to July 2021.According to the presence or absence of HC, they were assigned into two groups of HC (n=89) and non-HC (control, n=211). According to whether or not receiving an infusion of UCMSCs, 51 patients of HC degree Ⅱ-Ⅳ were divided into two groups of UCMSC infusion and non-infusion.The risk factors of HC after allo-HSCT were analyzed by χ2 test.Logistic regression was employed for multivariate analysis of P<0.05.Mann-Whitney U test was utilized for statistically analyzing the duration of gross hematuria and urinary tract irritation symptoms and evaluating the clinical efficacy of UCMSCs infusion for HC. Results:Among them, 89 (29.67%) developed HC post-allo-HSCT.Clinical grades were Ⅰ (n=38, 42.70%), Ⅱ (n=36, 40.45%), Ⅲ (n=13, 14.61%) and Ⅳ (n=2, 2.25%). The median occurrence time was 29 (21.5-35.0) days post-allo-HSCT.In univariate analysis, age ≤30 years, haploid transplantation, antithymocyte globulin (ATG), acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD), CMV-DNA positive pretreatment significantly boosted the risk of HC ( P<0.05). In multivariate analysis, aGVHD was an independent risk factor for HC ( OR=10.281, 95% CI: 1.606-65.813, P=0.014). Among 89 HC patients, 38 grade Ⅰ patients were complete remission(CR). Among 51 patients of grade Ⅱ-Ⅳ HC, the outcomes were CR (n=48) and non-remission(NR)(n=3). And 24/51 of them received UCMSCs plus conventional treatment.The duration of gross hematuria was shorter in UCMSCs infusion group than that in UCMSCs non-infusion group [12(9-17) vs 17(12.0-26.5) day] and the difference was statistically significant ( P=0.045). And the duration of urinary tract irritation symptoms was shorter in UCMSCs infusion group than that in UCMSCs non-infusion group [18(11-30) vs 27(18.0-35.5) days] and the difference was statistically significant ( P=0.048). Conclusions:Indicated for post-ALLO-HSCT HC, infusion of UCMSCs may significantly shorten the course of disease.Age ≤30 years, haploid transplantation and preconditioning with positive ATG, aGVHD and CMV-DNA may boost the risks of HC post-allo-HSCT.And aGVHD is an independent risk factor for HC after allo-HSCT.

Research advance of mesenchymal stem cell-derived exosomes in graft-versus-host disease / 中华器官移植杂志

Mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) are pluripotent stem cells with self-renewing differentiation, immunoactivity and anti-inflammatory potentials.Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) is currently the most effective treatment for hematologic malignancies.However, the presence of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) after transplantation has hindered the development of allo-HSCT.MSC-derived exosomes (MSC-exo) derived from mesenchymal stem cells have been confirmed to have broad therapeutic prospects in allo-HSCT and GVHD.This review focused upon immunomodulatory effects of MSC, biological activities of MSC-exo and research advances of MSC-exo on managing GVHD, aiming to provide new therapeutic rationales for GVHD in the future.

Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation for children with aggressive natural killer cell leukemia: one case report with a literature review / 中华器官移植杂志

Objective:To summarize the clinical features, treatments and prognoses of aggressive natural killer cell leukemia (ANKL) in children.Methods:Clinical data and follow-up results were retrospectively reviewed for one hospitalized case of ANKL in June 2019.Through a literature search, the relevant items were retrieved from the databases of China National Knowledge Infrastructure, WanFang and PubMed using the Chinese and English keywords of "aggressive natural killer cell leukemia" and "children" up to December 2021.Results:This 8-year-old girl was diagnosed with ANKL by flow cytometric immunophenotype and immunohistochemical stain.Fever was the initial manifestation accompanied by sallow complexion, fatigue, enlargement of liver, spleen and lymph node and hematopenia of three lines.Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) was performed after chemotherapy.As of April 2022, the child stayed in a disease-free survival state after follow-ups for over 2 years.The literature search finally yielded 7 eligible Chinese and 10 English reports with a total of 17 pediatric ANKLs.In this group, there were fever (n=15), rash (n=1), perineal mass (n=1) and diarrhea, vomiting and other digestive tract symptoms (n=1). Six cases were misdiagnosed during an early stage of disease.4 cases received chemotherapy alone, 3 cases received chemotherapy regimen for acute lymphoblastic leukemia, 1 child died and one death occurred after received chemotherapy regimen of "cisplatin + vincristine + doxorubicin + ifosfamide". Allo-HSCT was performed in 5 patients after remission with chemotherapy and one child died from multiple organ failure at 9 months after allo-HSCT.Nine cases gave up treatment.Conclusions:ANKL has a rapid disease progression, diverse clinical manifestations, easy misdiagnosis and poor prognosis.For suspected ANKL cases, clinicians perform multiple bone perforations at multiple sites and immunophenotype by flow cytometry as soon as possible to confirm the diagnosis.Currently allo-HSCT offers a long-term survival of ANKL patients.

Erythrocytosis after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation: report of 3 cases and literature review / 中华内科杂志

This is a report of three cases of three male patients. One of the patients had myelodysplastic syndrome, and two had aplastic anemia; their ages were 28, 32, and 21 years old, respectively. Two patients underwent sibling allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, and one underwent haploidentical hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. All the patients showed elevated hemoglobin and hematocrit at 6, 16, and 9 months after transplantation, with normal white blood cells and platelets and no splenomegaly. All causes of secondary polycythemia were ruled out. Bone marrow morphology showed no erythroid hyperplasia. The PCR result for BCR-ABL (P210, P230, P190, and variants) was negative, and there were no mutations at the amino acid site 617 of JAK2, exon 12 of JAK2, exon 9 of CALR, and amino acid site 515 of MPL. All three patients had hypertension. One patient was treated with amlodipine, and the other two patients were treated with angiotensin receptor blockers. The durations of erythrocytosis for these three patients were 6 years and 3 months, 4 years and 7 months, and 5 years and 3 months, respectively through December 2022. There was no tendency for spontaneous remission. Erythrocytosis after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is a rare complication. Previous reports in the literature suggest that the mechanism of post-transplant erythrocytosis in recipients of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation may be different from that of recipients of other transplants.

Clinical characteristics of patients with human adenovirus infection undergoing allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation / 中华内科杂志

Objective:To investigate the clinical characteristics and prognosis of human adenovirus (HAdV) infection in patients with allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT).Methods:This is a retrospective case series study. Patients who received allo-HSCT and had symptoms of HAdV infection were tested in the Hematology Department at Perking University People′s Hospital from August 2015 to October 2019. Real-time quantitative PCR was used to detect HAdV DNA from 2 728 patients with potential infection. HAdV DNA-positive patients were defined as having HAdV infection. The clinical features of these patients were analyzed, and a case-pair method was used to select patients without HAdV infection as the control group in a 1∶3 ratio. The clinical results of the two groups were compared using Kaplan-Meier and Log-rank testing.Results:A total of 7 119 samples were tested for HAdV, of which 99 samples from 36 patients were positive. Of these patients, 22 developed HAdV viremia, and 24 patients had concurrent infection with another virus. Nineteen patients had fever (53%), 25 had gastrointestinal symptoms (69%), 11 had respiratory symptoms (31%), nine had reduced liver function (25%), and six had nervous system symptoms (17%). Twenty-three patients developed acute graft-versus-host disease of grade 2 or higher. Of all the patients with HAdV infection, nine were treated with cidofovir, seven of whom became HAdV negative and two had invalid treatment. The median follow-up time was 496 (216, 940) d post-HSCT. The overall survival at 5 years post HSCT was 48.4%±9.2% vs. 91.3%±3.5% ( χ2=65.03, P<0.001) in patients with and without HADV, respectively. The non-relapse mortality at 5 years post-HSCT was 40.8%±8.8% vs. 4.0%±2.0% ( χ2=34.17, P<0.001) in patients with and without HADV, respectively. Conclusions:After allo-HSCT, HAdV-infected patients are dominated by gastrointestinal and respiratory symptoms and have an increased risk of combined acute graft-versus-host disease of >2 degrees. Patients with HAdV infection have poor overall survival and high non-relapse mortality.

Progress on methotrexate gene polymorphisms in allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation / 国际儿科学杂志

Methotrexate(MTX)is one of the main drugs used to prevent graft-versus-host disease(GVHD)after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, but it can cause a variety of adverse reactions, including severe mucositis, bone marrow suppression and hepatotoxicity.Studies on MTX gene polymorphisms mainly focused on the efficacy and complications of high-dose MTX therapy for various cancers, with relatively few studies on hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.From the perspective of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation(allo-HSCT), this article provided a comprehensive review on the pharmacokinetics, complications, and prognosis with MTX gene polymorphisms in allo-HSCT patients, in order to provide clinical reference.

Maintenance therapy following allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in myeloid neoplasms / 白血病·淋巴瘤

The acute myeloid leukemia and myelodysplastic syndromes are common myeloid neoplasms for which allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation is one of the main curative therapies. In high-risk patients, the relapse rate can be more than 40%, and patients with post-transplantation relapses have a very poor prognosis, so preventing relapse after transplantation is crucial. The maintenance therapy is a group of interventions to prevent relapse when morphological, molecular biological and cytogenetic results are constantly negative after transplantation. Currently, the commonly used maintenance therapy is the application of demethylating drugs, targeted drugs, etc., but their necessity, medicine plan, adverse effects, multi-drug combinations, and other aspects need to be studied urgently. This article will systematically describe the progress of post-transplantation maintenance therapy for high-risk myeloid neoplasms based on drug classification.

Progress of small molecule targeted therapy for acute myeloid leukemia / 白血病·淋巴瘤

Acute myeloid leukemia (AML) is the most common subtype of acute leukemia in adults with significant heterogeneity. Among hematological malignancies, targeted therapy for AML comes relatively late. Although traditional chemotherapy is still an indispensable part of AML treatment, more and more small molecule targeted drugs have been used in recent years since 2017. This article reviews the progress of small molecule targeted drugs for AML at the 64th American Society of Hematology annual meeting.

Efficacy and Prognostic Factors of Nonmyeloablative Allogeneic Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation for Patients with Acute Myeloid Leukemia / 中国实验血液学杂志

OBJECTIVE@#To retrospectively analyze the efficacy and complications of our institution's modified nonmyeloablative allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (NST) in treating intermediate-risk acute myeloid leukemia (AML) - first complete remission (CR1) and prognostic factors.@*METHODS@#Clinical data of 50 intermediate-risk AML-CR1 patients who underwent matched related NST at the Fifth Medical Center of Chinese People's Liberation Army General Hospital from August 2004 to April 2021 were collected, the hematopoietic recovery, donor engraftment and complications were observed, and overall survival (OS) rate, leukemia-free survival (LFS) rate, treatment-related mortality (TRM), and cumulative relapse rate were calculated. Statistical analysis of factors affecting prognosis was also preformed.@*RESULTS@#The median times for neutrophil and platelet recovery after transplantation were 10 (6-16) and 13 (6-33) days, respectively. One month after transplantation, 22 patients (44%) achieved full donor chimerism (FDC), and 22 patients (44%) achieved mixed chimerism (MC), among whom 18 cases gradually transited to FDC during 1-11 months, 4 cases maintained MC status. The overall incidence of acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD) was 36%, with a rate of 18% for grade II-IV aGVHD and a median onset time of 45 (20-70) days after transplantation. The overall incidence of chronic GVHD (cGVHD) was 34%, with 20% and 14% of patients having limited or extensive cGVHD, respectively. The incidence rates of infections, interstitial pneumonia, and hemorrhagic cystitis were 30%, 10%, and 16%, respectively. The 5-year OS rate, LFS rate, TRM, and cumulative relapse rate were 68%, 64%, 16%, and 20%, respectively. The increase of the number of CD34+ cells infused had shortened the recovery time for neutrophils and platelets (r =0.563, r =0.350). The number of CD34+ cells infused significantly influenced the occurrence of extensive cGVHD (OR =1.36, 95%CI : 1.06-1.84, P =0.024).@*CONCLUSION@#Modified NST is effective in treating intermediate-risk AML-CR1 patients, however, further expansion of sample size is needed to study prognostic factors.

Advances in Allogeneic Chimeric Antigen Receptor T Cells / 中国医学科学院学报

Autologous chimeric antigen receptor(CAR)T-cell therapy has improved the prognosis of hematological malignancies.Nevertheless,allogeneic CAR-T cells have potential advantages over the autologous approach available on the market.However,allogeneic CAR-T cells may cause life-threatening graft-versus-host disease(GVHD)or be rapidly eliminated by the host immune system.In this review,we analyze the different sources of T cells for optimal allogeneic CAR-T cell therapy,describe the different approaches,and introduce the gene editing measures to produce allogeneic CAR-T cells with limited potential for GVHD and improved anti-tumor effect.

Effects of FAC combined with Bu conditioning for SAA patients undergoing allogeneic stem cell transplantation / 西安交通大学学报(医学版)

【Objective】 To observe the effects of FAC combined with Bu conditioning for severe aplastic anemia (SAA) patients undergoing allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation. 【Methods】 The data of 28 SAA patients who underwent allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation in our hospital from January 2016 to September 2021 were collected and analyzed. The patients were divided into two groups: FAC conditioning group and FAC + Bu conditioning group. We observed the side effects of conditioning regimen, hematopoietic recovery, acute and chronic graft versus host disease (GVHD), viral infection, incidence of venous obstructive disease (VOD), progression free survival (PFS), and overall survival (OS). 【Results】 There was no significant difference between the two groups in age, gender, physical condition, history of disease, gender relationship between donors and recipients, transplantation type, infusion of bone marrow nucleated cells, MNC or CD34 positive cells (P>0.05). Compared with those in FAC group, the side effects of auditory hallucination and visual hallucination in FAC + Bu group increased, the incidence of mixed chimerism decreased, the time of platelet reconstruction shortened, the incidence of grade Ⅲ-Ⅳ aGVHD increased. However, 3-year PFS or OS did not significantly differ between the two groups. 【Conclusion】 FAC combined with Bu conditioning regimen promotes implantation and reduces mixed chimerism. However, it does not improve patients’ overall survival.

Effect of intraoperative cell salvage on allogeneic blood transfusion requirements, coagulation function and electrolytes in postpartum hemorrhage of cesarean section / 中国输血杂志

【Objective】 To explore the effect of intraoperative cell salvage on allogeneic blood transfusion requirements, coagulation function and electrolytes in postpartum hemorrhage patients. 【Methods】 A study on postpartum hemorrhage patients undergoing cesarean section in the Third Affiliated Hospital of Guangxi Medical University form September 2016 to May 2022 was conducted retrospectively. A total of 137 patients were enrolled and divided into experimental group (n=70) and control group (n=67) according to whether intraoperative cell salvage was used during operation. The blood loss, proportion and volume of allogeneic red blood cells (RBCs) and coagulation component transfusion, hemoglobin (Hb) level, coagulation function, electrolyte, the incidence of complications, proportion of ICU admission, ICU stay and in-hospital stay were compared between the two groups. 【Results】 The proportion of patients receiving allogeneic RBCs in the experimental group and in the control group was 31.4% vs 100.0% (P0.05). 【Conclusion】 This study demonstrated that intraoperative cell salvage could reduce the requirement for allogeneic RBCs without compromising coagulation function in postpartum hemorrhage patients undergoing cesarean section, but the changes of calcium need to be concerned after transfusion.

Effect of perioperative allogeneic blood transfusion on the prognostic quality of first-stage free flap repair and reconstruction in patients with oral cancer / 中国输血杂志

【Objective】 To study the effect of perioperative allogeneic blood transfusion on patients with oral squamous cell carcinoma (OSCC) after first-stage free flap transplantation. 【Methods】 A total of 306 OSCC patients who accepted primary repair and reconstruction using free flap admitted to our affiliation from January 2010 to January 2019 were selected as the research objects and retrospectively analyzed. According to their clinical data, they were divided into three groups: no transfusion group (n=98), 1-2 U transfusion group (n=131) and 3 + U transfusion group (n=77), respectively. The incidence of complications including flap infection, blood circulation disorder and hematoma in the three groups were compared. The five-year survival rate of the three groups was calculated by Kaplan-Meier analysis, and the relative risk of death was analyzed by Cox regression. 【Results】 There was no statistically significant difference among the three groups of patients (P>0.05) regarding such baseline data as embracing gender, age, primary location, degree of differentiation, adjuvant radiotherapy and chemotherapy. The complication rate of patients with 3 + U transfusion (25.97%) was significantly higher than that of no transfusion (6.12%) and 1-2 U transfusion (10.86%) (P<0.05); and the five-year survival rate of patients with 3 + U transfusion (51.95%) was significantly lower than that of no transfusion (69.38%) and 1-2 U transfusion (62.60%) (P<0.05). The results of univariate analysis showed that age, adjuvant radiotherapy, degree of tissue differentiation, collateral infiltration, vascular invasion and blood transfusion were all factors influencing the quality of prognosis after repair and reconstruction of first-stage free flap transplantation treating OSCC (P<0.05). The results of multivariate analysis showed that adjuvant chemoradiotherapy was an independent protective factor for the prognosis and survival quality of postoperative OSCC patients (P<0.01); the degree of differentiation, vascular invasion and blood transfusion were independent risk factors for the prognosis and survival quality of postoperative OSCC patients (P<0.05). 【Conclusion】 Perioperative allogeneic transfusion in OSCC patients can increase the risk of postoperative complications and directly affect their prognostic quality. It can be regarded as an important risk factor for OSCC patients.

Clinical outcomes and early immune reconstitution in patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia underwent allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation / 中国输血杂志

【Objective】 To investigate the correlation between early immune reconstitution and clinical outcomes in patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (ALL) underwent allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT). 【Methods】 The basic information and treatment data of 99 patients with ALL undering allo-HSCT from December 2018 to February 2022 were collected. The proportions of CD3+ T, CD3+CD4+ T, CD3+CD8+ T and CD3-CD16+CD56+ NK cells were detected before and 30, 60 and 90 days after transplantation using flow cytometry. The correlation between early cellular immune reconstitution and neutrophil engraftment, platelet engraftment, infection, and acute and chronic graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) was analyzed. 【Results】 Among 99 ALL patients, the median time of neutrophil engraftment was day +11 (range, 8-28), and the median time of platelet engraftment was day +14 (range, 10-120). The cumulative incidence of blood stream infection (BSI) was 11.10% and the cumulative incidence of CMV within 100 days of transplantation was 40.40%. The cumulative incidence of EBV within 100 days was 7.10%. The cumulative incidence of acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD) was 22.30%. The cumulative incidence of chronic graft-versus-host disease (cGVHD) within 1 year of transplantation was 16.20%. 1 -year cumulative relapse rate was 13.84%. The 1 -year cumulative disease-free survival (DFS) for all patients was 80.60% and the 1-year overall survival (OS) was 90.30%. The CD4+/CD8+ ratio was positively associated with the development of aGVHD at 30 days post-transplant (OR 1.21, 95CI 1.01-1.45, P<0.05). The proportion of CD16+ CD56+ NK cell were higher in the group without BSI than that in the BSI group before and 30 days after transplantation (P < 0.05). The proportion of CD4+ T-cell were lower in the CMV infection group than that in the group without CMV infection at 60 and 90 days post-transplant(P<0.05). The higher level of CD4+ T-cells at 60 days post-transplant was a protective factor for CMV infection within 100 days (HR 0.91, 95CI 0.84-0.99, P<0.05). 【Conclusion】 Early immune reconstitution after allo-HSCT in patients with ALL is associated with aGVHD, CMV and BSI.

Impact of SARS-CoV-2 infection on graft composition and early transplant outcomes following allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation / 中华血液学杂志

Objective: To assess the feasibility of using donors with novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) for allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) when there are no other available donors and allo-HSCT cannot be delayed or discontinued. Methods: Seventy-one patients with malignant hematological diseases undergoing allo-HSCT between December 8, 2022, and January 10, 2023, were included. Of these, 16 received grafts from donors with mild COVID-19 (D-COVID(+) group) and 55 received grafts from donors without COVID-19 (D-COVID(-) group). The graft compositions were compared between the two groups. Engraftment, acute graft-versus-host disease (aGVHD), overall survival (OS), and relapse were also evaluated. Results: There were no serious side effects or adverse events in the D-COVID(+) group. The mononuclear cell dose and CD34(+) cell dose were comparable between the two groups, and no additional apheresis was required. There were no significant differences in the lymphocyte, monocyte, and T-cell subset doses between the two groups. The median natural killer cell dose in the D-COVID(+) group was significantly higher than that in the D-COVID(-) group (0.69×10(8)/kg vs. 0.53×10(8)/kg, P=0.031). The median follow-up time was 72 (33-104) days. All patients achieved primary engraftment. The 60-day platelet engraftment rates in the D-COVID(+) and D-COVID(-) groups were 100% and (96.4±0.2) %, respectively (P=0.568). There were no significant differences in neutrophil (P=0.309) and platelet (P=0.544) engraftment times. The cumulative incidence of grade 2-4 aGVHD was (37.5±1.6) % vs. (16.4±0.3) % (P=0.062), and of grade 3-4 aGVHD was 25.0% ±1.3% vs. 9.1% ±0.2% (P=0.095) in the D-COVID(+) and D-COVID(-) groups, respectively. The probabilities of 60-day OS were 100% and 98.1% ±1.8% (P=0.522) in the D-COVID(+) and D-COVID(-) groups, respectively. There was no relapse of primary disease during the study period. Conclusion: When allo-HSCT cannot be delayed or discontinued and no other donor is available, a donor with mild COVID-19 should be considered if tolerable. Larger sample sizes and longer follow-up periods are required to validate these results.

Efficacy analysis of anti-thymocyte globulin regimens with different timing strategies for matched sibling donor hematopoietic stem cell transplantation / 中华血液学杂志

Objective: To compare the effects of two administration time strategies for rabbit antihuman thymocyte immunoglobulin (rATG) of 5mg/kg total dose in matched sibling donor hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (MSD-HSCT) . Methods: This study retrospectively analyzed the clinical data of 32 patients who received MSD-HSCT with 5 mg/kg rATG conditioning regimen at the Department of Hematology of the First Medical Center of the People's Liberation Army General Hospital from October 2020 to April 2022. The patients were classified into two groups: the 4d-rATG group (16 cases), who received antithymocyte globulin (ATG) from day -5 to day -2, and the 2d-rATG group (16 cases), who received ATG from day -5 to day -4. Between the two groups, the transplantation outcomes, serum concentrations of active antithymocyte globulin (ATG) in patients from -4 days to 28 days after graft infusion (+28 days), and the reconstitution of lymphocyte subsets on days +30, +60, and +90 were compared. Results: The cumulative incidences of acute graft-versus-host disease at 100 days after graft infusion were 25.0% (95% CI 7.8% -47.2% ) and 18.8% (95% CI 4.6% -40.2% ) (P=0.605) in the 4d-rATG group and 2d-rATG group, respectively. The 1-year cumulative incidences of chronic graft-versus-host disease were 25.9% (95% CI 8.0% -48.6% ) and 21.8% (95% CI 5.2% -45.7% ) (P=0.896). The 1-year cumulative incidence of relapse was 37.5% (95% CI 18.9% -65.1% ) and 14.6% (95% CI 3.6% -46.0% ) (P=0.135), and the 1-year probabilities of overall survival were 75.0% (95% CI 46.3% -89.8% ) and 100% (P=0.062). The total area under the curve (AUC) of serum active ATG was 36.11 UE/ml·d and 35.89 UE/ml·d in the 4d-rATG and 2d-rATG groups, respectively (P=0.984). The AUC was higher in the 4d-rATG group than that in the 2d-rATG group (20.76 UE/ml·d vs 15.95 UE/ml·d, P=0.047). Three months after graft infusion, the average absolute count of CD8(+) T lymphocytes in the 4d-rATG group was lower than that in the 2d-rATG group (623 cells/μl vs 852 cells/μl, P=0.037) . Conclusion: The efficiencies of GVHD prophylaxis in MSD-PBSCT receiving 4d-ATG regimen and the 2d-rATG regimen were found to be similar. The reconstruction of CD8(+)T lymphocytes in the 2d-rATG group was better than that in the 4d-rATG group, which is related to the lower AUC of active ATG after transplantation.