Regression of human kidney cancer following allogeneic stem cell transplantation is associated with recognition of an HERV-E antigen by T cells
J. Clin. Invest. Yoshiyuki Takahashi, et al. 118:1099 doi:10.1172/JCI34409 [Go to this article.]

Figure 2
Detection of RCC-reactive CD8⁺ T cells in PBMCs after transplantation. The frequency of CD8⁺ T cells in PBMCs before and at multiple time points after HSCT that recognized patient B cells or patient RCC cells was measured by an IFN-γ ELISPOT analysis; SAUJ (filled squares), LYO (filled circles), JOH (open squares), and POR (open circles). Alloreactive CD8⁺ T cells that recognized patient B cells were absent at baseline, then became detectable in all 4 patients after HSCT, with the highest precursor frequency measured in the first few months after transplantation. RCC-reactive T cells were absent before HSCT in patients but became detectable after HSCT in 3 of 4 RCC patients. In patient JOH, who did not have a disease response, these populations were detected only transiently. In contrast, patients LYO and SAUJ, who had evidence for a GVT effect, had RCC-reactive T cells detected for more than 1.5 and 4 years, respectively, after HSCT.