The immune system of organ transplant recipients recognizes transplanted organs as foreign objects and attacks them. Acute rejection can occur immediately after organ transplantation. To prevent such rejection, patients must continuously take immunosuppressants. These immunosuppressants spread throughout the body and can cause side effects such as kidney toxicity and increased infection risk. The very drugs meant to save the organ end up weakening the patient's immune system.
A joint research team led by Professor Cha Hyung-joon of POSTECH's Department of Chemical Engineering and Professor Joo Gye-il of Ewha Womans University announced they have developed a new technology that reduces the burden on patients who must take immunosuppressants for life after organ transplantation. The technology uses an adhesive material modeled after mussels. It is a spray-type coating that prevents immune rejection when applied directly to the surface of transplanted organs.
The research team focused on delivering drugs only to the transplanted organ instead of spreading them throughout the body. Using the principle that allows mussels to adhere strongly even underwater, they created microparticles containing immunosuppressants. When the particles are sprayed onto the organ surface, they adhere stably even on moist tissue, acting like an invisible protective barrier on the organ surface. The particles remain in place while slowly releasing immunosuppressants. The structure allows the drug to act only at the transplant site without spreading throughout the body via the bloodstream.
In xenotransplantation experiments conducted on animals, the research team found that immune cell infiltration and inflammatory responses were significantly reduced. The survival period of transplanted tissue also increased. The immune suppression effect was confirmed to be more than twice as high as conventional drug delivery methods.
The immune shield developed through this research uses a spray method, making it easily applicable to organ surfaces with complex shapes. Professor Cha Hyung-joon said, "This will be utilized as a key technology to increase the success rate of xenotransplantation in the future."