Impact of Blood Pressure on Allograft Function and Survival in Kidney Transplant Recipients.

The optimal target blood pressure for kidney transplant (KT) patients remains unclear. We included 808 KT patients from the KNOW-KT as a discovery set, and 1,294 KT patients from the KOTRY as a validation set. The main exposures were baseline systolic blood pressure (SBP) at 1 year after KT and time-varying SBP.

STAT3 Decoy Oligodeoxynucleotides Suppress Liver Inflammation and Fibrosis in Liver Cancer Cells and a DDC-Induced Liver Injury Mouse Model.

Liver damage caused by various factors results in fibrosis and inflammation, leading to cirrhosis and cancer. Fibrosis results in the accumulation of extracellular matrix components. The role of STAT proteins in mediating liver inflammation and fibrosis has been well documented; however, approved therapies targeting STAT3 inhibition against liver disease are lacking.

Association of Serum Osteoprotegerin With Vascular Calcification, and Cardiovascular and Graft Outcomes in Kidney Transplant Patients: Results From the KNOW-KT.

Background: Vascular calcification and stiffness contribute to increased cardiovascular morbidity in patients with chronic kidney disease. This study investigated associations between serum osteoprotegerin (OPG) levels and vascular calcification or stiffness to assess cardiovascular and graft outcomes in kidney transplant patients.

Methods: The KoreaN cohort study for Outcome in patients With Kidney Transplantation was a prospective multicenter cohort study.

Benefits of statin therapy within a year after kidney transplantation.

Cardiovascular disease remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality after kidney transplantation (KT). Although statins reduce cardiovascular risk and have renal benefits in the general population, their effects on KT recipients are not well-established. We studied the effects of early statin use (within 1-year post-transplantation) on long-term outcomes in 714 KT recipients from the Korean cohort study for outcome in patients with KT.

High pretransplant FGF23 level is associated with persistent vitamin D insufficiency and poor graft survival in kidney transplant patients.

Vitamin D (25[OH]D) insufficiency and fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF23) elevation are usually attenuated after kidney transplantation (KT). However, elevated FGF23 may be associated with poor graft outcomes and vitamin D insufficiency after KT. This study investigated the effect of pretransplant FGF23 levels on post-KT 25(OH)D status and graft outcomes.

Transferrin-Conjugated Melittin-Loaded L-Arginine-Coated Iron Oxide Nanoparticles for Mitigating Beta-Amyloid Pathology of the 5XFAD Mouse Brain.

Alzheimer's disease (AD) is one of the most prevalent neurodegenerative diseases and a major contributor to dementia. Although the cause of this condition has been identified long ago as aberrant aggregations of amyloid and tau proteins, effective therapies for it remain elusive. The complexities of drug development for AD treatment are often compounded by the impermeable blood-brain barrier and low-yield brain delivery.

Gadolinium-Cyclic 1,4,7,10-Tetraazacyclododecane-1,4,7,10-Tetraacetic Acid-Click-Sulfonyl Fluoride for Probing Serine Protease Activity in Magnetic Resonance Imaging.

Serine protease is linked to a wide range of diseases, prompting the development of robust, selective, and sensitive protease assays and sensing methods. However, the clinical needs for serine protease activity imaging have not yet been met, and the efficient in vivo detection and imaging of serine protease remain challenging. Here, we report the development of the gadolinium-cyclic 1,4,7,10-tetraazacyclododecane-1,4,7,10-tetraacetic acid-click-Sulfonyl Fluoride (Gd-DOTA-click-SF) MRI contrast agent targeting serine protease.

Impact of iron status on kidney outcomes in kidney transplant recipients.

Iron plays an important role in hemodynamics and the immunity, independent of anemia. Since dynamic changes occur in iron storage after kidney transplantation (KT), we investigated the association between iron status and kidney outcomes in KT patients. We analyzed data from the KoreaN cohort study for Outcome in patients With KT (KNOW-KT).

Effect of Obesity and High-Density Lipoprotein Concentration on the Pathological Characteristics of Alzheimer's Disease in High-Fat Diet-Fed Mice.

The typical pathological features of Alzheimer's disease (AD) are the accumulation of amyloid plaques in the brain and reactivity of glial cells such as astrocytes and microglia. Clinically, the development of AD and obesity are known to be correlated. In this study, we analyzed the changes in AD pathological characteristics in 5XFAD mice after obesity induction through a high-fat diet (HFD).

The Korean Organ Transplantation Registry (KOTRY): an overview and summary of the kidney-transplant cohort.

Background: As the need for a nationwide organ-transplant registry emerged, a prospective registry, the Korean Organ Transplantation Registry (KOTRY), was initiated in 2014. Here, we present baseline characteristics and outcomes of the kidney-transplant cohort for 2014 through 2019.

Methods: The KOTRY consists of five organ-transplant cohorts (kidney, liver, lung, heart, and pancreas).

Early fluid management affects short-term mortality in patients with end-stage kidney disease undergoing chronic hemodialysis and requiring continuous renal replacement therapy.

Background: Early fluid management is considered a key element affecting mortality in critically ill patients requiring continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT). Most studies have primarily focused on patients with intrinsic acute kidney injury requiring CRRT, although end-stage kidney disease (ESKD) patients generally exhibit greater vulnerability. We investigated the association between fluid balance and short-term mortality outcomes in ESKD patients undergoing chronic hemodialysis and requiring CRRT.

Effect of DA-9701 on the Gastrointestinal Motility in the Streptozotocin-Induced Diabetic Mice.

Background: Compared to the general population, diabetic patients experience more frequent episodes of gastrointestinal (GI) motility dysfunction, owing to the disruption of functional innervations. DA-9701 is a new prokinetic agent formulated from the extracts of semen and tuber.

Aim: To investigate the effect of DA-9701 on GI motility in an animal model of streptozotocin (STZ)-induced diabetes.

Melittin-loaded Iron Oxide Nanoparticles Prevent Intracranial Arterial Dolichoectasia Development through Inhibition of Macrophage-mediated Inflammation.

In intracranial arterial dolichoectasia (IADE) development, the feedback loop between inflammatory cytokines and macrophages involves TNF-α and NF-κB signaling pathways and leads to subsequent MMP-9 activation and extracellular matrix (ECM) degeneration. In this proof-of-concept study, melittin-loaded L-arginine-coated iron oxide nanoparticle (MeLioN) was proposed as the protective measure of IADE formation for this macrophage-mediated inflammation and ECM degeneration. IADE was created in 8-week-old C57BL/6J male mice by inducing hypertension and elastase injection into a basal cistern.

Better health-related quality of life in kidney transplant patients compared to chronic kidney disease patients with similar renal function.

Renal functional deterioration is associated with physical and mental burdens for kidney transplant (KT) and chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients. However, the change in health-related quality of life (HRQOL) over time in KT patients compared to that of native CKD patients has not been evaluated. We addressed this issue using KT patients registered in the KNOW-KT cohort study and patients at CKD stage 1-3 registered in the KNOW-CKD cohort study.

Dll4 Blockade Promotes Angiogenesis in Nonhealing Wounds of Sox7-Deficient Mice.

This study aimed to elucidate the role of the proangiogenic transcription factors Sox7 and Sox17 in the wound healing process and investigate the therapeutic potential of Dll4 blockade, which is an upstream regulator of Sox17, for the treatment of nonhealing wounds. After generating a full-thickness skin defect wound model of endothelial Sox7- and/or Sox17-deficient mice, we measured the wound healing rates and performed histological analysis. The effects of an anti-Dll4 antibody on wound angiogenesis in -deficient mice and diabetic mice were assessed.

Granulocyte Colony-Stimulating Factor Attenuates Renal Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury by Inducing Myeloid-Derived Suppressor Cells.

Background: Granulocyte colony-stimulating factor (G-CSF) can increase populations of myeloid-derived suppressor cells, innate immune suppressors that play an immunoregulatory role in antitumor immunity. However, the roles of myeloid-derived suppressor cells and G-CSF in renal ischemia-reperfusion injury remain unclear.

Methods: We used mouse models of ischemia-reperfusion injury to investigate whether G-CSF can attenuate renal injury by increasing infiltration of myeloid-derived suppressor cells into kidney tissue.

Outcomes of the surgical management of encapsulating peritoneal sclerosis: A case series from a single center in Korea.

Background: Encapsulating peritoneal sclerosis (EPS) is a rare but near-fatal complication of peritoneal dialysis (PD). Despite the high mortality rate of EPS, the surgical treatment strategy of severe EPS is yet to be established.

Methods: We retrospectively analyzed outcomes of patients with EPS who underwent enterolysis for intractable EPS at Seoul National University Hospital between 2001 and 2018.

Uric acid induced the phenotype transition of vascular endothelial cells induction of oxidative stress and glycocalyx shedding.

Recent data suggested a causative role of uric acid (UA) in the development of renal disease, in which endothelial dysfunction is regarded as the key mechanism. Endothelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EndoMT) and shedding of the glycocalyx are early changes of endothelial dysfunction. We investigated whether UA induced EndoMT in HUVECs and an animal model of hyperuricemia fed with 2% oxonic acid for 4 wk.

Induction of Accommodation by Anti-complement Component 5 Antibody-based Immunosuppression in ABO-incompatible Heart Transplantation.

Background: Plasmapheresis in combination with immunoglobulin and rituximab is often used to induce accommodation in ABO-incompatible (ABOi) living-donor transplantation; however, this regimen cannot be applied to cases of ABOi deceased-donor transplantation. Here, we investigated whether an anti-complement component 5 (C5) antibody-based regimen can induce accommodation in ABOi heart transplantation.

Methods: Both IgM and IgG anti-blood type A antibodies were induced in wild-type mice by sensitization using human blood type A antigen.

Peripheral blood transcriptome analysis and development of classification model for diagnosing antibody-mediated rejection vs accommodation in ABO-incompatible kidney transplant.

The major obstacle to successful ABO blood group-incompatible kidney transplantation (ABOi KT) is antibody-mediated rejection (AMR). This study aimed to investigate transcriptional profiles through RNA sequencing and develop a minimally invasive diagnostic tool for discrimination between accommodation and early acute AMR in ABOi KT. Twenty-eight ABOi KT patients were selected: 18 with accommodation and 10 with acute AMR at the 10th day posttransplant protocol biopsy.

Anti-CD45RB Antibody Therapy Attenuates Renal Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury by Inducing Regulatory B Cells.

Background: Regulatory B cells are a newly discovered B cell subset that suppresses immune responses. Recent studies found that both anti-CD45RB and anti-Tim-1 treatments regulate immune responses by inducing regulatory B cells; however, the role of these cells in renal ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) is unknown.

Methods: Using mouse models, including T cell-deficient (RAG1 knockout and TCR knockout) mice and B cell-deficient (MT) mice, we investigated the effects of regulatory B cells and anti-CD45RB on IRI and the mechanisms underlying these effects.

Indoxyl Sulfate-Induced Extracellular Vesicles Released from Endothelial Cells Stimulate Vascular Smooth Muscle Cell Proliferation by Inducing Transforming Growth Factor-Beta Production.

Vascular access stenosis predominantly occurs as a result of neointimal hyperplasia (NH) formation at the anastomosis. Moreover, in the presence of NH, transforming growth factor-beta (TGF-β) promotes vascular smooth muscle cell (VSMC) proliferation. Extracellular vesicles (EVs) released by endothelial cells are closely associated with vascular dysfunction.