Immune activation- and regulation-related patterns in stable hand transplant recipients
Summary We assessed cell subsets and expression of a set of genes related to the T-cell populations in peripheral blood mononuclear cells to elucidate whether immune status of stable hand transplant recipients (HTx) differs from stable kidney transplant recipients (KTx). The study was conducted on five HTx 4.8 ± 1.7 years after transplantation and 30 stable KTx 7.9 ± 2.4 years after transplantation as well as 18 healthy volunteers. The research involved PBMC gene expression analysis of CD4, CD8, CTLA4, GZMB, FOXP3, IL10, IL4, ILR2A, NOTCH, PDCD1, PRF1, TGF-B, and TNF-A genes on a custom-designed low-density array (TaqMan) as well as flow cytometry assessment of lymphocyte subpopulations. HT…
The switch from proteasome to immunoproteasome is increased in circulating cells of patients with fast progressive immunoglobulin A nephropathy and associated with defective CD46 expression.
The proteasome to immunoproteasome (iPS) switch consists of β1, β2 and β5 subunit replacement by low molecular weight protein 2 (LMP2), LMP7 and multicatalytic endopeptidase-like complex-1 (MECL1) subunits, resulting in a more efficient peptide preparation for major histocompatibility complex 1 (MHC-I) presentation. It is activated by toll-like receptor (TLR) agonists and interferons and may also be influenced by genetic variation. In a previous study we found an iPS upregulation in peripheral cells of patients with immunoglobulin A nephropathy (IgAN). We aimed to investigate in 157 IgAN patients enrolled through the multinational Validation Study of the Oxford Classification of IgAN (VAL…
Post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorder in adult renal transplant recipients: case series and review of literature
Post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorder (PTLD) is serious life-threating complication of transplantation. The clinical picture differs from lymphomas observed in the general population, with different manifestation, histopathology, higher aggressiveness with involvement of sites beyond the primary lymph node, and poorer outcome. The objective of the study was to present nine cases of PTLD observed in our centre among the kidney transplant recipient population and discuss the results with up-to-date literature. We performed a retrospective single-centre assessment of PTLD incidence in the cohorts of kidney transplant recipients followed by our centre. We found nine cases of PTLD, five m…
Multisystem Amyloidosis in a Coal Miner with Silicosis: Is Exposure to Silica Dust a Cause of Amyloid Deposition?
The over-secretion of monoclonal immunoglobulin light chains by clonal B cells followed by the aggregation and extracellular deposition of fibrillar deposits are responsible forthe clinical course AL amyloidosis. It is well documented that silica significantly increases the number of immunoglobulin-secreting cells. In the present paper, we report on a coal miner with silicosis and fast progressing primary amyloidosis with predominantly heart, kidney, and lung manifestations. Severeheart failure due to myocardial hypertrophy resulted in the patient’s death. We conclude that long-term environmental silica exposure and silica deposition may contribute to the development of monoclonal gammopath…
Prone Position Facilitates Creation of Ulnar-Basilic Arteriovenous Fistula
Background: The distal ulnar-basilic arteriovenous fistula (UBAVF) is a rarely used alternative type of vascular access for haemodialysis. The location of the vein on the back aspect of the forearm forces an extremely uncomfortable external rotation of the upper limb during surgery when the patient is in a supine position. Methods: We present a new approach towards creating UBAVF, which involves placing the patient in the prone position, thus eliminating the aforementioned inconvenience. The procedure was performed and described in a 46-year-old patient with chronic kidney disease (CKD) due to diabetic nephropathy. In the period from September 2021 to December 2021, we created an additional…
Angiotensin II Type 1 Receptor Antibodies Are Higher in Lupus Nephritis and Vasculitis than Other Glomerulonephritis Patients
AbstractAngiotensin II type 1 receptor (AT1R) antibodies are considered non-HLA (human leukocyte antigen) antibodies connected with humoral rejection after kidney transplantation. The role of AT1R antibodies in the pathogenesis of glomerular diseases and systemic vasculitis is unknown. We assessed the level of AT1R antibodies in 136 patients with different types of glomerulonephritis and systemic vasculitis and we observed kidney function and proteinuria, serum albumin and total protein levels for 2 years. The mean levels of AT1R antibodies were the following: 6.00 ± 1.31 U/ml in patients with membranous nephropathy (n = 18), 5.67 ± 1.31 U/ml with focal and segmental glomerulosclerosis (n =…
Respiratory involvement in antineutrophil cytoplasmic antibody-associated vasculitides: a retrospective study based on POLVAS registry
OBJECTIVES: The study aimed to characterise the Polish population of (ANCA)-associated vasculitides (AAV) with respiratory involvement (RI), in comparison to the subgroup without lung manifestations and the other cohorts. METHODS: Retrospective analysis of the Polish population of AAV with RI was conducted, based on data from the POLVAS registry. Standard descriptive statistics, χ2 test, and Mann-Whitney U test were used to perform comparisons. RESULTS: Among 461 cases qualified to this study, there were 316 cases with RI (68.5%), 206 with granulomatosis with polyangiitis (GPA) (65.2%), 80 with eosinophilic granulomatosis with polyangiitis (EGPA) (25.3%) and 30 with microscopic polyangiitis…
Anti-ETAR and suPAR as markers of disease activity in renal ANCA-associated vasculitis.
Purpose In anti-neutrophil cytoplasmic antibody (ANCA)-associated vasculitis (AAV), there is a lack of reliable biomarkers of disease activity. The aim of the study was to evaluate soluble urokinase plasminogen activator receptor (suPAR) and anti-endothelin-1 type A receptor (anti-ETAR) antibodies levels in active phase and remission of AAV. Patients and methods We enrolled 60 patients (median age 63.0 years) with renal AAV into this study. Plasma suPAR, urine suPAR (expressed as urine suPAR/creatinine ratio) and serum anti-ETAR antibodies were assayed by ELISA. Disease activity was assessed using Birmingham Vasculitis Activity Score (BVAS) and patients were divided into 2 subgroups based o…