BMT can both transmit and eliminate autoimmune diseases, and hence it has been
suggested as an optional treatment for severe autoimmune conditions. In this …

It is now well recognized that cells traffic in both directions between fetus and mother during
pregnancy. Moreover, fetal cells have been found to persist for years, probably for a lifetime …

Background Systemic sclerosis is a disease of unknown origin which often occurs in women
after their childbearing years. It has many clinical and histopathological similarities to …

Objective The realization that fetal cells pass into the maternal circulation and can survive for
many years has raised the question of whether fetal microchimerism can cause subsequent …

Fetal microchimerism, the engraftment of fetal progenitor cells into maternal tissues, has
been implicated in the etiology of autoimmune diseases. We used PCR analysis to …

In humans, fetal cells enter the maternal circulation during all pregnancies and can persist
for decades. Human studies, however, are often limited by the number of subjects and the …

Isolation of fetal cells from maternal blood is under active investigation as a noninvasive
method of prenatal diagnosis. In the context of studying cell surface antigens expressed on …

Systemic sclerosis is an autoimmune rheumatic disease characterised by fibrosis,
vasculopathy and inflammation. The exact aetiology of SSc remains unknown but evidences …

Systemic sclerosis is a chronic progressive disease in which features of Raynaud's
phenomenon and vascular occlusion are followed by sclerotic and fibrotic changes in the …

Objective To develop a murine model for use in examining the role of microchimeric cells
and certain chemical exposures in the pathogenesis of systemic sclerosis (SSc). Methods …