Each field has its own language. HLA is no different. Here are some of the more common acronyms and what they mean.
I received this style of list when I first started working in an HLA lab and it was so handy as a newcomer to the field. If this appeals to you, you can download the excel list and add more terms that work for your space!
HLA Alphabet Soup
If you’re new to HLA, this first table is filled with primary terms (in my experience) for easy reference. The second table contains a more extensive list.
Primary Acronym List
| Acronym/Abbreviation | Meaning in the HLA world | Category |
| AB (or Ab, ab) | Antibody | Immunology |
| BMT | Bone Marrow Transplant (aka HCT) | Transplantation |
| CAD donor | Cadaver Donor (aka DD/Deceased Donor) | Transplantation |
| CI | HLA Class I (MHC Class I) | HLA Field, Immunology |
| CII | HLA Class II (MHC Class II) | HLA Field, Immunology |
| CREG | Cross-REactive Group | Immunology, HLA |
| CXM | Crossmatch or Cytotoxic Crossmatch (context-dependent) | Assay |
| DCD | Donation after Cardiac Death (type of CAD donor) | Transplantation |
| DSA | Donor Specific Antibody | Transplantation |
| FXM or FCXM | Flow Crossmatch | Assay |
| HCT | Hematopoietic (Stem) Cell Transplant (aka BMT, HSCT) | Transplantation |
| HLA | Human Leukocyte Antigen | HLA Field, Immunology |
| MCS | Mean/Median Channel Shift (related to Flow Crossmatch assay) | Assay |
| MFI | Mean/Median Fluorescent Intensity (related to flow crossmatch assay, antibody detection) | Assay |
| MM or MMAg | Mismatch or Mismatched Antigens (related to virtual crossmatch testing) | Transplantation, Assay |
| NC | Negative Control | Assay, Reagent |
| NGS | Next Generation Sequencing | Assay |
| NMDP | National Marrow Donor Program | Transplantation |
| OPO | Organ Procurement Organization | Transplantation |
| OPTN | Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network | Transplantation |
| PBL | Peripheral Blood Lymphocytes | Immunology, Reagent |
| PC | Positive Control | Assay, Reagent |
| PCR | Polymerase Chain Reaction | Assay |
| PRA | Percent Reactive Antibody | Assay |
| QC | Quality Control | Assay |
| RBC | Red Blood Cells | General |
| SA | Single Antigen (ex: LSA/Luminex SA assay) | Assay |
| SBT | Sequence Based Typing | Assay |
| SSO(P) | Sequence Specific Oligonucleotide (Primer) | Assay |
| SSP | Sequence Specific Primer | Assay |
| Tx | Transplant(ed)/Transfusion/Treatment (meaning is often context-dependent) | General |
| UNOS | United Network for Organ Sharing | Transplantation |
| WBC | White Blood Cells | General, Immunology |
| XM | Crossmatch (Sometimes CXM) | Assay |
Here is a more complete list of terms used in the HLA field. This mainly adds in reagents and transplant acronyms.
If there’s something you feel should be added to the list, definitely message me with your suggestion!
Extended HLA Acronym List
| Acronym/Abbreviation | Meaning in the HLA world | Category |
| AB (or Ab, ab) | Antibody | Immunology |
| ABMR | Antibody Mediated Rejection | Transplantation |
| AA (or aa) | Amino Acid | General |
| ABOi | ABO incompatible | Transplantation |
| ADS | Adsorb, Adsorption, Adsorbed | Immunology |
| AHG | Anti-Human Globulin | Immunology, Reagent |
| ASHI | American Society of Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics | Society |
| BD | Brain dead/Brain death (in relation to cadaver donors) | Transplantation |
| BM | Bone Marrow | Transplantation |
| BMD | Bone Marrow Donor | Transplantation |
| BMR | Bone Marrow Recipient | Transplantation |
| BMT | Bone Marrow Transplant (aka HCT) | Transplantation |
| BSA | Bovine Serum Albumin | Reagent |
| C’ | Complement (as in Complement-activating, Complement Cascade, aka TEC’) | Immunology, Reagent |
| CAD donor | Cadaver Donor (aka DD/Deceased Donor) | Transplantation |
| CAP | College of American Pathologists | Society |
| CDR | Complementarity Determining Region | Immunology |
| CI | HLA Class I (MHC Class I) | HLA Field, Immunology |
| CII | HLA Class II (MHC Class II) | HLA Field, Immunology |
| CREG | Cross-REactive Group | HLA Field, Immunology |
| CTL | Cytotoxic T Lymphocyte (CD8+ T Cell) | Immunology |
| CXM | Cytotoxic Crossmatch or Crossmatch (context-dependent) | Assay |
| CYNAP | Cytotoxicity Negative, Absorption Positive | HLA Field, Immunology |
| DCD | Donation after Cardiac Death (type of CAD donor) | Transplantation |
| DD | Deceased Donor (aka CAD donor) | Transplantation |
| dnDSA | De novo DSA | HLA Field, Transplantation |
| DSA | Donor Specific Antibody | HLA Field, Transplantation |
| DTT | Dithiothreitol | Reagent |
| ECD | Extended Donor Criteria | Transplantation |
| EDTA | Ethylenediaminetetraacetic Acid | Reagent |
| ELISA | Enzyme-Linked Immunosorbent Assay | Assay |
| ETA | Estimated Time of Arrival | General |
| FITC | Fluorescein Isothiocyanate | Reagent |
| FWA | Four Wash Amos | Assay |
| FXM or FCXM | Flow Crossmatch | Assay |
| GSSP | Group Specific Sequencing Products | Assay |
| GVHD | Graft Versus Host Disease | Transplantation |
| HBSS | Hanks Balanced Salt Solution | Reagent |
| HCT | Hematopoietic (Stem) Cell Transplant (aka BMT, HSCT) | Transplantation |
| HD | Hemodialysis | General |
| HLA | Human Leukocyte Antigen | HLA Field, Immunology |
| KDPI | Kidney Donor Profile Index | Transplantation |
| KIR | Killer cell Immunoglobulin-like Receptors | HLA Field, Immunology |
| KP | Kidney-Pancreas (often transplanted together, sometimes seen as PK) | Transplantation |
| KPD | Kidney Paired Donation | Transplantation |
| LRD | Living Related Donor | Transplantation |
| LSA | Luminex Single Antigen | Assay |
| LSM | Lymphocyte Separation Media | Reagent |
| LURD | Living Unrelated Donor | Transplantation |
| LUT | Living Unrelated Transplant | Transplantation |
| MCD | Mean/Median Channel Shift (related to flow crossmatch assay) | Assay |
| MFI | Mean/Median Fluorescence Intensity (related to flow crossmatch assay, antibody detection) | Assay |
| MM or MMAg | Mismatch or Mismatched Antigens (related to virtual crossmatch testing) | Transplantation, Assay |
| MUD | Matched Unrelated Donor | Transplantation |
| NC | Negative Control | Reagent |
| NGS | Next Generation Sequencing | Assay |
| NK Cells | Natural Killer Cells | Immunology |
| NKR | National Kidney Registry | Transplantation |
| NMDP | National Marrow Donor Program | Transplantation |
| OLT | Orthotopic Liver Transplant | Transplantation |
| OPO | Organ Procurement Organization | Transplantation |
| OPTN | Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network | Transplantation |
| PBL | Peripheral Blood Lymphocytes | Immunology, Reagent |
| PBS | Phosphate Buffered Saline | Reagent |
| PC | Positive Control | Reagent |
| PCR | Polymerase Chain Reaction | Assay |
| PE | Phycoerythrin | Reagent |
| PKD | Polycystic Kidney Disease | General |
| PKE | Paired Kidney Exchange | Transplantation |
| PM | Preventative Maintenance | Laboratory |
| PRA | Percent Reactive Antibody | Assay |
| PT | Proficiency Testing | Assay |
| QC | Quality Control | Assay |
| QNS | Quantity Not Sufficient | General |
| R-PE | R-Phycoerythrin | Reagent |
| RBC | Red Blood Cells | General |
| RD | Renal Donor | Transplantation |
| RPM | Rotations Per Minute (generally in relation to centrifuge speed for lab purposes) | General |
| RR | Renal Recipient | Transplantation |
| RUO | Research Use Only | Laboratory |
| SA | Single Antigen (categorically includes LSA) | Assay |
| SAPE | Streptavidin, R-Phycoerythrin Conjugate | Reagent |
| SBT | Sequence Based Typing | Assay |
| SCD | Standard Criteria Donor | Transplantation |
| SSO(P) | Sequence Specific Oligonucleotide (Primer) | Assay |
| SSP | Sequence Specific Primer | Assay |
| TBE | Tris-Borate-EDTA buffer | Reagent |
| TCMR | T-cell Mediated Rejection | Transplantation |
| TEC’ | Teresaki Complement (aka C’) | Reagent |
| TRALI | Transfusion Related Acute Lung Injury | Immunology |
| UNOS | United Network for Organ Sharing | Transplantation |
| VAD | Ventricular Assist Device (may include L/Left, R/Right, or Bi/Both. Ex: LVAD) | General |
| VXM or VCXM | Virtual Crossmatch | Assay |
| WBC | White Blood Cells | General, Immunology |
| WHO | World Health Organization | Society |
| XM | Crossmatch (sometimes CXM; Could mean cytotoxic, virtual, or flow crossmatching) | Assay |
