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Article: Immunosuppressant Drugs
- Article from:
- World of Microbiology and Immunology
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2003 The Gale Group Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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Immunosuppressant drugs
Immunosuppressant drugs are medications that reduce the ability of the
immune system
to recognize and respond to the presence of foreign material. Such drugs were developed and still have an important use as a means of ensuring that transplanted organs and tissues are not rejected by the recipient.
Rejection of transplanted organs or tissue is a natural reaction of a person's immune system. In a very real sense, the transplanted material is foreign and is treated, as would be an infectious microorganism. The immune system attacks and tries to destroy the foreign matter. Suppressing the immune system allows the transplanted material to be retained.
Drugs to ...