Haematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT) is one area of stem cell research where major advances in the cure of haematological disorders such as leukaemia and lymphoma , inherited immune disorders, and aplastic anaemia, have been made .

Currently over 7000 transplants are carried out each year in Europe . Despite successes ( due to advances in the understanding of the immune system and the therapeutic role and function of bone marrow stem cells in treatment ) the overall survival rate after HSCT is poor . A 40 - 60% survival rate is the norm for such transplants, which involve the use of bone marrow, peripheral blood stem cells and umbilical cord blood as the stem cell source

TRANS-NET aims to reverse the trend of poor survival by changing the current concepts of HSCT patient management by improving the understanding at the scientific level, transplant therapy and ensuing graft verus host disease (GvHD) and graft versus leukeamia (GvL) responses . TRANS-NET aims to identify novel prediction indicators and diagnostic markers for the assessment of patients and donors for predicting clinical outcome e.g. occurrence of GvHD and infection. Once identified the diagnostic markers, for example, will be tested by multivariate analysis in Consortium cohorts and once verified, results can be used to modify clinical assessment of patients and ultimately modify individual patient therapy and care. To achieve this goal TRANS-NET will include investigations into the patho-biological mechanisms involved in GvL , GvHD and specific therapies. Partners include the pioneers in clinical research into HSCT who will integrate with scientists with expertise in both the basic biology of the allo-immune response and in genomics , necessary to dissect the complex processes involved in HSCT. Scientific results will be assessed alongside the known clinical indicators of good or poor HSCT outcome with the aim of improving this clinical "diagnostic score" on an individual patient basis. TRANS-NET has therefore included biostatistics and bioinformatics experts to both train and aid in the study planning, and the univariate and multivariate statistical analyses needed for complex clinical cohorts. Important societal training issues on the ethical uses of stem cells are included in the project which will also be applicable to other disciplines. The project involves basic scientists, clinicians, bio-ethicists, pharmacologists, molecular biologists and microarray technologists, with a strong interaction between biotechnology and genomics; focused with the aim to translate, wherever possible, scientific data to clinical practice. The project includes intersectorial disciplines such as autoimmune disease and dermatology. In particular novel aspects include animal and human comparative genomics and non-HLA immunogenetics, such as pharmacogenomics and the development of novel bio-assays for HSCT. These should ultimately lead to novel concepts and clinical practises for individualised patient pre-transplant assessment and optimisation of novel and current therapies and clinical protocols.

TRANS-NET research includes::-

•  Functional genomic tools to assist in:-

The identification and testing of new or known single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNP) of potential relevance to transplantation genetics.

Creation of novel diagnostic reagents.

•  Novel biotechnologies to enable:-

Assessment of potentially new therapies and cell inhibitors of alloreactivity

New means of monitoring transplant related complications.

•  Gene expression profiling techniques to assist in :-

Identifying targets for potential new immunotherapeutic interventions

Identification of novel diagnostic reagents.