University of California, San Francisco   About UCSF   Search UCSF   UCSF Medical Center    UCSF Department of Surgery    
Transplantation Research Lab

Lab Director

Qizhi Tang, Ph.D. 

Assistant Professor of Surgery
Director, Transplantation Research Lab

Regulatory T cell control of autoimmunity and transplant rejection

Support the Lab

Your generous support of the Transplantation Research Lab helps scientists to discover new treatments and cures for transplant organ rejection.

Welcome to the Transplantation Research Lab


What we do...

The Transplantation Research Lab is dedicated to the discovery of new and more effective methods for preventing and managing the rejection of transplanted organs. 

Current projects include:

  • Understanding how regulatory T cells (specialized immune cells) prevent autoimmune diabetes and transplant rejection
  • Engineering dendritic cells (DCs) to inhibit donor-specific T cells and targeting DCs to lymphoid organs
  • Investigational use of the immunosuppressive drug called Belatacept to control graft rejection
  • Studying the effects of gaseous carbon monoxide to increase anti-inflammatory response
  • Establishing successful protocols for withdrawal from immunosuppressive regimens


Member Labs:

Ischemic Organ Injury Lab

Kang Lab


Tang Lab





Recent Publications

Garrod KR, Liu FC, Forrest LE, Parker I, Kang SM, Cahalan MD
NK cell patrolling and elimination of donor-derived dendritic cells favor indirect alloreactivity.
Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950), Mar-01-2010; 1845: 2329-36.  Epub 2010 Feb 5.
Brennan TV, Jaigirdar A, Hoang V, Hayden T, Liu FC, Zaid H, Chang CK, Bucy RP, Tang Q, Kang SM
Preferential priming of alloreactive T cells with indirect reactivity.
American journal of transplantation : official journal of the American Society of Transplantation and the American Society of Transplant Surgeons, Apr-01-2009; 94: 709-18.
Melli K, Friedman RS, Martin AE, Finger EB, Miao G, Szot GL, Krummel MF, Tang Q
Amplification of autoimmune response through induction of dendritic cell maturation in inflamed tissues.
Journal of immunology (Baltimore, Md. : 1950), Mar-01-2009; 1825: 2590-600.
Brennan TV, Hoang V, Garrod KR, Liu FC, Hayden T, Kim J, Kang SM
A new T-cell receptor transgenic model of the CD4+ direct pathway: level of priming determines acute versus chronic rejection.
Transplantation, Jan-27-2008; 852: 247-55.
View all Publications »
X