Multiple patterns of MHC class II antigen expression on cellular constituents of rat heart grafts. Lack of correlation with graft survival, but strong correlation with vasculitis.

The patterns of induced major histocompatibility antigen expression on indigenous cellular elements of heterotopic rat cardiac grafts were determined by immunohistologic methods in a variety of donor-recipient combinations. Heart grafts were studied in combined full-MHC- and non-MHC-disparate combinations, isolated intra-MHC-disparate combinations, and non-MHC-disparate combinations. The pattern of class II expression on cellular constituents of the grafts was highly variable and critically dependent upon the nature of the specific unidirectional donor-recipient combination. No uniform pattern of class II expression emerged that was clearly predictive of rapidity of rejection or of protracted survival. However, vasculitis was confined to grafts in combinations in which induced class II expression on graft large vessel endothelium was present. Sites of vasculitis were never encountered in the absence of induced class II expression on overlying endothelium. Vasculitis and associated induced class II expression on large vessel endothelium were present in rapidly rejecting grafts and in grafts with indefinite survival. In the latter, vasculitis was shown to progress to a late phase of occlusive intimal thickening. Induced class I expression on graft cardiac myofibers was present in all the genetically disparate donor-recipient combinations examined in this study, irrespective of the length of graft survival. This investigation has shown that no uniform stereotyped pattern of MHC antigen expression on cellular constituents correlates with the length of graft survival. However, induced class II expression on graft large vessel endothelium is closely associated with vasculitis, which can directly progress to occlusive intimal thickening in grafts with prolonged survival.