Sat Jan 25 15:45:00 UTC 2025: ## Scientists Achieve Breakthrough in Heart Transplant Survival
**Boston, MA – January 26, 2025** – A significant breakthrough in heart transplant survival has been achieved by scientists at Massachusetts General Hospital. A new protocol, detailed in *Science Translational Medicine*, allows for extended survival of transplanted hearts in nonhuman primates *without* the need for life-long immunosuppressant drugs. This addresses a major obstacle in organ transplantation, where rejection is a leading cause of failure.
Current heart transplant recipients rely on immunosuppressants, which carry significant side effects. The new protocol involves co-transplanting a heart with a kidney from the same donor, along with a preemptive donor bone marrow transplant. This approach, tested on cynomolgus monkeys, resulted in significantly longer heart survival in the dual-transplant group compared to those receiving only a heart transplant.
Researchers attribute the success to regulatory T cells within the transplanted kidney, which have immune-calming properties. Gene expression analysis showed that the hearts in the tolerant recipients resembled those of immunosuppressed recipients, indicating a state of immune quiescence.
The study authors have also adapted the protocol for deceased-donor transplants, using cryopreserved bone marrow, bringing the possibility of clinical translation closer to reality. They suggest this method could be particularly beneficial for patients with end-stage heart and kidney failure requiring combined transplants. This breakthrough offers hope for improving the long-term outcomes and quality of life for heart transplant recipients.
First Piper 