Transplantation in humans involves the transfer of organs, tissues, or cells from one individual (the donor) to another (the recipient) replacing damaged or malfunctioning tissues or cells. Histocompatibility is critical in transplantation. The immune system evolved to recognize foreign antigens, including those on transplanted tissues, and may mount an immune response against them. The major histocompatibility complex (MHC) plays a central role in this process. MHC molecules present antigens to T cells, determining whether a tissue is recognized as self or non-self. When an organ or tissue is transplanted, the recipient's immune system may recognize the foreign antigens present on the graft, triggering immune responses, potentially leading to graft rejection. Hyperacute rejection occurs rapidly after transplantation due to pre-existing antibodies in the recipient's blood that target antigens on the graft but is minimized by matching of donor and recipient blood. Acute rejection involves T cells recognizing graft antigens and mounting an immune response against the graft. Chronic rejection, which occurs over a longer period, involves a combination of both T cell-mediated and antibody-mediated mechanisms. Immunosuppressants are commonly used to prevent rejection and include corticosteroids (glucocorticoids) that inhibit the production of pro-inflammatory cytokines, and calcineurin inhibitors such as cyclosporine and tacrolimus that target the calcineurin enzyme crucial for the activation of T cells. Other strategies seek to prevent rejection by inducing immune tolerance. These approaches include using regulatory T cells (Tregs) to suppress immune responses, and co-stimulatory blockade to prevent T cell activation. Bone marrow (hematopoietic stem cell) transplantation is used to repopulate damaged or malfunctioning bone marrow with healthy stem cells from a donor and commonly employed in the treatment of leukaemia and lymphoma. In stem cell and bone marrow transplantation, the donor immune cells may attack the recipient's tissues, causing graft vs. host disease (GVHD) where immune cells from the transplanted graft (donor) recognize the recipient's tissues (host) as foreign and attack them. This recognition and subsequent immune response are driven by molecular interactions involving various immune cells, cytokines, and antigen-presenting cells. In GVHD, the balance between activated effector T cells (which drive the immune response) and Tregs (which suppress the immune response) is disrupted, leading to inadequate suppression of the immune attack. Immune cell transplantation, also known as adoptive immunotherapy, involves the transplantation of immune cells from a healthy donor to a recipient with the aim of treating various diseases, particularly cancers and certain immune disorders. Immune cells used for transplantation can be sourced from the patient (autologous), a related or unrelated donor (allogeneic), or even genetically modified for specific therapeutic purposes. Different immune cell types can be transplanted, including T cells, natural killer (NK) cells, and dendritic cells. Immune cells are often stimulated and expanded in vitro before transplantation to increase their numbers and therapeutic potential. Finally, transplanted immune cells can also be engineered to express specific receptors, such as chimeric antigen receptors (CARs) or T cell receptors (TCRs), to target specific antigens on cancer cells or pathogens. We offer a large product range of research reagents for studying transplantation, including Iba1 antibodies, CD276 antibodies, DKK1 antibodies, DKK1 ELISA Kits, and Cyclophilin B ELISA Kits. Explore our full transplantation product range below and discover more, for less.