In this study, the distribution of heterozygous ��32 and homozygous ��32 mutation was very consistent with the published Imatinib Mesylate IC50 data of the global distribution of this gene polymorphism [10, 16]. Heterozygous and homozygous genotypes occur in Caucasian population in 15%�C20% and 1%, respectively [16]. Heterozygous individuals show no abnormal receptor function compared with wt/wt individuals. All examined donor and recipient factors showed no statistical differences between groups. This seems important due to the small number of patients included in this study and the possible bias by including selected patients with the diagnosis of ITBL into the study cohort. Despite increasing success rates in clinical OLT over the past decades, ITBL remains a major cause for recipient morbidity and mortality [1�C5].

This single complication creates enormous costs and aggravates organ shortage. Up till today, only risk factors for ITBL could be identified in various clinical studies. The length of cold ischemic time was correlated with the development of ITBL [1�C4]. Donor age was found to be a significant risk factor for ITBL. Other studies were not able to show these correlations [5]. Immunological causes seem to play only a minor role in the pathogenesis of ITBL. Moench et al. described a single base-pair deletion in the coding region of the chemokine receptor-5��32, CCR-5��32, to be a significant risk factor for the development of ITBL. In Moench’s study on 146 OLT patients CCR-5��32 was a significant risk factor for ITBL (incidence of ITBL in CCR-5��32 patients was 30% versus 11.

7% in CCR-5 wild-type patients) and was correlated with a decreased survival rate after OLT. The overall ITBL rate was 15% [6]. The different incidence of ITBL of the study by Moench and this study may be a reason for the different findings, even though both investigators used the same definition of ITBL. Donors were younger in this study with 38.2 �� 16 (non-ITBL patients) and 42.9 �� 17 (ITBL) versus 46 �� 14 (non-ITBL) and 52 �� 14 (ITBL) in Moench’s study. However, cold ischemic time was shorter in Moench’s investigation (564 minutes (ITBL) and 538 minutes (non-ITBL) versus 637 minutes (ITBL) and 558 minutes (non-ITBL)). The use of arterial back table perfusion was also routinely done for all organs that were harvested by a team of our own. Fischer-Maas et al.

analyzed CCR-5��32 polymorphism in 137 pediatric patients but showed no correlation Cilengitide with biliary complications [9]. The incidence of ITBL varies between 1.4% and 20% according to the literature, which might be a problem of different definition of this disease [3�C5]. The rate of ITBL in our OLT patients (2100 patients between 1988 and 2004) is 4.0%. In the presented study on 169 OLT patients the overall incidence of ITBL was 11.