Dietary supplementation may improve antibiotic-induced GVHD following stem cell transplants

Researchers at The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center have identified a specific gut bacterium involved in the progression of graft-versus-host disease (GVHD) after antibiotic treatment of allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) and discovered that nutritional supplementation can prevent antibiotic-induced GVHD in preclinical models, according to a study published today in Cell.

Key Pathway for Activated T-cells Might Be Targeted to Fight GVHD

The study demonstrates that T cell activation increases intracellular trafficking via the endoplasmic-reticulum-to-Golgi pathway, and that a protein known as SEC23B — a subunit of the COPII complex — regulates T cells’ production of these important secretory proteins after activation. The work points toward a new potential therapeutic target for decreasing the severity of graft-versus-host-disease (GVHD), a potentially fatal complication of bone marrow transplantation.

Roswell Park Suggests New Strategy for Controlling Graft vs. Host Disease in Blood/Marrow Transplant Recipients

New preclinical work by a team of researchers from Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center’s Transplant and Cellular Therapy Program suggests that the risk of developing acute graft vs. host disease (GVHD) during allogeneic blood/marrow transplant (BMT) — a potentially curative treatment for selected patients with hematologic disorders — can be decreased using an existing class of drugs called beta adrenergic agonists.

New NCCN Guidelines Debut to Manage Complications and Improve Readiness for Stem Cell Transplant Recipients

The National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) published new NCCN Clinical Practice Guidelines in Oncology (NCCN Guidelines) for Hematopoietic Cell Transplantation, (aka stem cell transplant or bone marrow transplant), with step-by-step information on best practices for this blood cancer treatment