Modeling temperature-dependent transport properties in dissipative particle dynamics: A top-down coarse-graining toward realistic dynamics at the mesoscale.

Dissipative particle dynamics (DPD) is a widespread computational tool to simulate the behavior of soft matter and liquids in and out of equilibrium. Although there are many applications in which the effect of temperature is relevant, most of the DPD studies have been carried out at a fixed system temperature. Therefore, this work investigates how to incorporate the effect of system temperature variation within the DPD model to capture realistic temperature-dependent system properties.

The job of public transport, ride-hailing and delivery drivers: Conditions during the COVID-19 pandemic and implications for a post-pandemic future.

Transport workers were among the most affected by the COVID-19 crisis. In several countries, public transport and delivery drivers were considered essential workers during the pandemic, while the demand changed dramatically. In this context, little is known about the actual effects of the pandemic on the lives of drivers, and whether those effects depend on the type and formality of the corresponding job.

Role of time from transplantation to biopsy in histologic ABMR: A single center report.

Background: Allograft biopsies with lesions of Antibody-Mediated Rejection (ABMR) with Microvascular Inflammation (MVI) have shown heterogeneous etiologies and outcomes.

Methods: To examine factors associated with outcomes in biopsies that meet histologic ABMR criteria, we retrospectively evaluated for-cause biopsies at our center between 2011 and 2017. We included biopsies that met the diagnosis of ABMR by histology, along with simultaneous evaluation for anti-Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA) donor-specific antibodies (DSA).

Kidney transplantation using lymphocyte depleting induction and standard maintenance immunosuppression at the height of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic in New York City: A single-center experience.

Background: Concerns have been raised regarding proceeding with kidney transplantation using standard immunosuppression in COVID-19 endemic areas.

Methods: We performed a single-center review of all adult kidney transplants performed during the COVID-19 pandemic in New York City. Patients were managed with standard immunosuppression protocols, including lymphocyte depleting induction and trough-guided tacrolimus.

Influence of patient characteristics and immunosuppressant management on mortality in kidney transplant recipients hospitalized with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19).

The influence of patient characteristics and immunosuppression management on COVID-19 outcomes in kidney transplant recipients (KTRs) remains uncertain. We performed a single-center, retrospective review of all adult KTRs admitted to the hospital with confirmed COVID-19 between 03/15/2020 and 05/15/2020. Patients were followed from the date of admission up to 1 month following hospital discharge or study conclusion (06/15/2020).

Conversion to belatacept maintenance immunosuppression in HIV-positive kidney transplant recipients.

There are only scattered case reports documenting belatacept use in HIV + kidney transplant recipients. We performed a retrospective review to describe short-term outcomes following conversion to belatacept in a cohort of HIV + patients. Patients were included if they were converted to belatacept between May 2015 and May 2019, had an HIV- donor, and received ≥4 doses of belatacept.

Conversion to belatacept within 1-year of renal transplantation in a diverse cohort including patients with donor-specific antibodies.

Early conversion from a calcineurin inhibitor to belatacept has the potential to improve long-term renal allograft function; however, there remains limited experience with this strategy among African Americans and patients with preformed donor-specific antibodies (DSA). To examine these subgroups, we performed a single-center review of kidney transplant recipients converted to belatacept within 1-year of transplant between 01/2011 and 10/2017. All patients received lymphocyte-depleting induction with maintenance tacrolimus and mycophenolate +/- corticosteroids.

Gender inequality and sexual height dimorphism in Chile.

Chile has experienced significant improvements in its economy; thus, a secular trend in height has been observed in its population. Gender equality has also improved hand in hand with active policies addressing the gender gap in several dimensions (work, education, health) and overall economic improvement. This study examined changes in sexual height dimorphism in four samples of Chilean male and female working-age subjects and attempted to establish associations with gender equality and welfare.

Liver, simultaneous liver-kidney, and kidney transplantation from hepatitis C-positive donors in hepatitis C-negative recipients: A single-center study.

Transplantation of organs from hepatitis C virus (HCV)-antibody (Ab) and -nucleic acid test (NAT) positive donors into HCV-negative recipients has been proposed to expand the donor pool and shorten waiting times. Data on early single-center outcomes are lacking. Nineteen liver (LT, including seven simultaneous liver-kidney [SLKT]) and 17 kidney transplant (KT) recipients received organs from HCV (+) donors; of these, 13 were HCV NAT (+) in each group.

Different outcomes after kidney transplantation between African Americans and Whites: A matter of income? A single-center study.

Background: Our center has one of the largest representations of African Americans in listed and transplanted patients. We investigated if and how racial differences affect outcomes in our patient population.

Methods: We performed a retrospective analysis of all kidney transplants in African American and (non-Hispanic) White patients in our center from 1/1/2005 to 12/31/2014.

Pre-liver transplant renal dysfunction and association with post-transplant end-stage renal disease: A single-center examination of updated UNOS recommendations.

Simultaneous liver-kidney allocation protocols allocate dual organs based on a sustained eGFR of 30 mL/min or less. A 2017-UNOS update includes CKD3 as dual organ candidates but only when the listing eGFR is <30 mL/min while recommending a "safety net" for prioritized kidney listing post-LT. We retrospectively reviewed adult LTs examine whether the UNOS proposal captured the LT population at highest risk for developing post-LT ESRD.

Acanthamoeba endophthalmitis during treatment for cutaneous disease in a renal transplant patient.

Acanthamoeba infections are difficult to diagnose and treat. We present a renal transplant patient who developed Acanthamoeba endophthalmitis on therapy with posaconazole and miltefosine for cutaneous acanthamobiasis. The patient was maintained on intracameral voriconazole injections, and oral azithromycin, fluconazole, and flucytosine.

Differences in Attitudes Toward Immunosuppressant Therapy in a Multi-ethnic Sample of Kidney Transplant Recipients.

Barriers for renal transplant patients to immunosuppressant medication adherence are poorly understood, despite the high rate and toll of non-adherence. We sought to assess factors that contribute to barriers to immunosuppressive medication adherence in an ethnically diverse sample of 312 renal transplant patients recruited from three transplant centers across New York City. Transplant patients who were at least 6 months post-transplant completed questionnaires while waiting for their medical appointment.

A robust upscaling of the effective particle deposition rate in porous media.

In the upscaling from pore to continuum (Darcy) scale, reaction and deposition phenomena at the solid-liquid interface of a porous medium have to be represented by macroscopic reaction source terms. The effective rates can be computed, in the case of periodic media, from three-dimensional microscopic simulations of the periodic cell. Several computational and semi-analytical models have been studied in the field of colloid filtration to describe this problem.

Safety and Efficacy of Treatment of Hepatitis C in Kidney Transplant Recipients With Directly Acting Antiviral Agents.

Background: With the development of all oral, interferon-free directly acting antiviral (DAA) medications, treatment of hepatitis C virus (HCV) infection in renal transplant recipients is possible, but limited data exists on its safety and efficacy.

Methods: We performed a retrospective cohort analysis of patients transplanted at our center with HCV who have been started on DAAs. Primary endpoints included sustained virologic response as defined as negative viral load at 12 weeks postcompletion of therapy and allograft function.

Recirculation zones induce non-Fickian transport in three-dimensional periodic porous media.

In this work, the influence of pore space geometry on solute transport in porous media is investigated performing computational fluid dynamics pore-scale simulations of fluid flow and solute transport. The three-dimensional periodic domains are obtained from three different pore structure configurations, namely, face-centered-cubic (fcc), body-centered-cubic (bcc), and sphere-in-cube (sic) arrangements of spherical grains. Although transport simulations are performed with media having the same grain size and the same porosity (in fcc and bcc configurations), the resulting breakthrough curves present noteworthy differences, such as enhanced tailing.

Increased access to transplantation of highly sensitized patients under the new kidney allocation system. A single center experience.

We aimed to investigate the impact of the new kidney allocation system (KAS) on the rate of transplantation of sensitized patients at our center. Pre-KAS and post-KAS intervals were Jan 1st to Dec 3rd 2014 and Jan 1st 2015 to Dec 3rd 2015, respectively. The number of deceased-donor crossmatches performed by flow cytometry increased from 715 pre-KAS to 1188 post-KAS.

Pregnancy in sensitized kidney transplant recipients: a single-center experience.

Background: We aimed to examine the clinical outcomes of sensitized pregnant kidney transplant recipients.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study of female patients who received kidney transplant at Montefiore transplant center between June 1, 2009 through December 31, 2014 and had a documented pregnancy in our system.

Results: We found that 11 women had pregnancies during this period with a median age of 36 yr (range 22, 39).

A pathogenesis-based transcript signature in donor-specific antibody-positive kidney transplant patients with normal biopsies.

Affymetrix Human Gene 1.0-ST arrays were used to assess the gene expression profiles of kidney transplant patients who presented with donor-specific antibodies (DSAs) but showed normal biopsy histopathology and did not develop antibody-mediated rejection (AMR). Biopsy and whole-blood profiles for these DSA-positive, AMR-negative (DSA +/AMR-) patients were compared to both DSA-positive, AMR-positive (DSA +/AMR +) patients as well as DSA-negative (DSA -) controls.

Clinical and molecular significance of microvascular inflammation in transplant kidney biopsies.

The diagnostic criteria for antibody-mediated rejection (AMR) are continuously evolving. Here we investigated the clinical and molecular significance of different Banff microvascular inflammation (MVI) scores in transplant kidney biopsies. A total of 356 patients with clinically indicated kidney transplant biopsies were classified into three groups based on MVI scores of 0, 1, 2, or more for Groups 1-3, respectively.

Kidney transplantation in patients with severe preoperative hypertension.

Background: Severe systemic hypertension (HTN) is a risk factor for perioperative cardiovascular complications; however, its impact at the time of kidney transplantation (KTX) is not well defined.

Methods: A retrospective cohort study of adult kidney-only transplant recipients between October 2009 and December 2012 was performed to examine outcomes between patients with (n = 111) and without (n = 98) severe preoperative HTN defined as SBP > 180 or DBP > 110 mmHg.

Results: Recipients with severe HTN were older (56.

Kidney transplant complications from undiagnosed benign prostatic hypertrophy.

Background: It is estimated that approximately 50% of males over 50 have benign prostatic hypertrophy (BPH). BPH is underappreciated in anuric patients with end stage renal disease, and failure of diagnosis in this population can lead to complications after kidney transplantation.

Methods: A single-center retrospective review of male patients over 50 yr of age transplanted from January 1, 2010, until September 30, 2013, was performed.

Clinical, Histological, and Molecular Markers Associated With Allograft Loss in Transplant Glomerulopathy Patients.

Background: We aimed to investigate the clinical, histopathological, and molecular factors associated with allograft loss in transplant glomerulopathy (TGP) patients.

Methods: Of the 525 patients who underwent clinically indicated kidney biopsies, 52 (10%) had diagnosis of TGP. Gene expression profiles of 28 TGP and 11 normal transplant kidney biopsy samples were analyzed by Affymetrix HuGene 1.

Pore-scale simulation of fluid flow and solute dispersion in three-dimensional porous media.

In the present work fluid flow and solute transport through porous media are described by solving the governing equations at the pore scale with finite-volume discretization. Instead of solving the simplified Stokes equation (very often employed in this context) the full Navier-Stokes equation is used here. The realistic three-dimensional porous medium is created in this work by packing together, with standard ballistic physics, irregular and polydisperse objects.

Pretransplant immunologic risk assessment of kidney transplant recipients with donor-specific anti-human leukocyte antigen antibodies.

Background: Patients with pretransplantation strong donor-specific anti-human leukocyte antigen (HLA) antibodies (DSA) are at higher risk for rejection. We aimed to study the safety of kidney transplantation in patients with lower strength DSAs in a prospective cohort study.

Methods: Three hundred and seventy-three consecutive adult kidney transplant recipients with (DSA+; n=66) and without (DSA-; n=307) DSA were evaluated.