Thymus Fragment Transplantation in the Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome

Excerpt

To the editor: Recently, a Canadian group reported beneficial effects of thymic epithelium transplantation on the immune status of patients with the acquired immunodeficiency syndrome (1). We present here our results with transplantation of cultured thymus fragments in two patients with the syndrome and Kaposi's sarcoma.

Cultured thymus fragments were prepared according to Hong's method (2), by culturing thymic material (5 g each time) from two infants for 16 days on Gelfoam (absorbable gelatin sponge; Upjohn Co., Kalamazoo, Michigan), at the air/fluid interface. Fragments were either implanted in the forearm or thigh.

Patient 1: A 36-year-old, black, promiscuous homosexual man