Steroid treatment alters adhesion molecule and chemokine expression in experimental acute graft-vs.-host disease of the intestinal tract

When started early after GVHD onset, prednisolone-related beneficial effects can affect aGVHD target organs differently, involving divergent regulation of inflammation and leukocyte migration. Specifically, a change in adhesion properties between leukocytes and endothelial cells in the gastrointestinal tract may be one of the initial steps in a cascade of steroid-related aGVHD-attenuating events.