Nomenclature

In 2011 the WHO Nomenclature Committee for Factors of the HLA System updated the rules for the nomenclature of HLA loci and alleles (Marsh , Tissue Antigens 78:482, 2011; http://hla.alleles.org/nomenclature/naming). Presently, >18000 HLA alleles (HLA class I 13,324 and HLA class II 4857 have become known primarily due to extensive improvements in molecular based technologies.

The next two decades will see developments in regenerative medicine/biology to re-create and/or repair damaged organs and a switch from standard to patient specific treatment.

Immunogenetics of the host, beyond MHC will make us understand why some organs survive despite having so many so many incompatibilities, while others are lost even though they are optimally matched. Prediction will become the key word for transplantation.

• Utility of Plasma Biomarkers in Diagnosing Spontaneous Preterm Birth