Interactions between T lymphocytes and endothelial cells in allograft rejection

Vascular endothelial cells participate in the process of allograft rejection by promoting both the recruitment and the activation of alloreactive T cells. There have been three major recent advances in the field of interactions between T cells and endothelial cells that are of direct relevance to the process of cell-mediated responses to allografts: first, endothelial cells mediate selective recruitment of CD4+ T cell subsets, including naive and memory T cells and T cell subsets of the Th1 and Th2 phenotypes; second, endothelial cells co-stimulate the production of effector cytokines by helper T cells; and third, endothelial cells regulate T cell apoptosis.