Management of Intraoperative Sickle Crisis During Kidney Transplant in a Patient With Sickle Cell Disease: A Case Report.

A 31-year-old male patient with a history of sickle cell disease (SCD) with stage V chronic kidney disease (CKD) presented for a deceased donor kidney transplant. During surgery, the transplanted kidney showed mottling and limited cortical flow, raising concerns for an intraoperative sickle cell crisis versus hyperacute rejection. Postoperative imaging revealed decreased vascularity, and the patient was treated with RBC exchange.

Plasma Transcriptome Profile Associated with Chronic Kidney Disease Progression.

Introduction: Understanding the molecular signals associated with the progression of kidney disease is vital for risk stratification and targeted treatment. Recent advances in RNA-sequencing technique have enabled us to characterize extracellular transcriptome profiles for precision diagnostics.

Method: We evaluated the plasma mRNA profile of participants exhibiting slow (n = 119) and fast (n = 119) decline in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) among the Chronic Renal Insufficiency Cohort (CRIC) in a nested case control study.

Blockade of store-operated calcium entry by BTP2 preserves anti-inflammatory gene expression in human peripheral blood mononuclear cells.

Store-operated calcium entry (SOCE) is essential for cellular signaling. Earlier studies of the pyrazole derivative BTP2, an efficient inhibitor SOCE, identified that SOCE blockade suppresses proinflammatory gene expression. The impact of SOCE blockade on gene expression at the whole transcriptome level, however, is unknown.

Selective modulation of gene expression in activated normal human peripheral blood mononuclear cells by store-operated calcium entry blocker BTP2.

Calcium is a critical signaling molecule in many cell types including immune cells. The calcium-release activated calcium channels (CRAC) responsible for store-operated calcium entry (SOCE) in immune cells are gated by STIM family members functioning as sensors of Ca store content in the endoplasmic reticulum. We investigated the effect of SOCE blocker BTP2 on human peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) stimulated with the mitogen phytohemagglutinin (PHA).

Urinary cell mRNA profiling of kidney allograft recipients: Development of a portable protocol for noninvasive diagnosis of T cell mediated rejection and BK virus nephropathy.

Background: We developed urinary cell mRNA profiling for noninvasive diagnosis of acute T cell mediated rejection (TCMR) and BK virus nephropathy (BKVN), two significant post-transplant complications. Our profiling protocol for the multicenter Clinical Trial of Transplantation-04 (CTOT-04) study consisted of centrifugation of urine to prepare cell pellets, washes, addition of an RNA preservative, storage at 80C and shipment in cold containers to our Gene Expression Monitoring (GEM) Core for RNA isolation and quantification of mRNA in RT-qPCR assays. To simplify profiling, we developed a filter-based protocol (ZFBP) that eliminated the need for centrifugation, RNA preservative, storage at 80C, and shipment in cold containers for mRNA profiling.

Dietary Protein and Fiber Affect Gut Microbiome and Treg/Th17 Commitment in Chronic Kidney Disease Mice.

Background: Patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) have dysbiosis, dysmetabolism, and immune dysregulation. Gut microbiome plays an important role shaping the immune system which is an important modulator of CKD progression.

Methods: We compared the effect of a diet low in protein and high in fiber (LP-HF; n = 7) to that of diet rich in protein, but low in fiber (HP-LF; n = 7) on gut microbiome and T-cell commitment in male CKD (Alb/TGF-β1) mice.

Butyrate producing microbiota are reduced in chronic kidney diseases.

Chronic kidney disease is a major public health concern that affects millions of people globally. Alterations in gut microbiota composition have been observed in patients with chronic kidney disease. Nevertheless, the correlation between the gut microbiota and disease severity has not been investigated.

Urinary Cell Transcriptome Profiling and Identification of ITM2A, SLAMF6, and IKZF3 as Biomarkers of Acute Rejection in Human Kidney Allografts.

Unlabelled: Identification of a shared gene expression pattern between T cell-mediated rejection (TCMR) and antibody-mediated rejection (AMR) in human kidney allografts may help prioritize targets for the treatment of both types of acute rejection.

Methods: We performed RNA sequencing and bioinformatics of genome-wide transcriptome profiles of urinary cells to identify novel mRNAs shared between TCMR and AMR and of mechanistic relevance. Customized RT-QPCR assays were then used to validate their abundance in urinary cells.

Urinary cell transcriptomics and acute rejection in human kidney allografts.

BACKGROUNDRNA sequencing (RNA-Seq) is a molecular tool to analyze global transcriptional changes, deduce pathogenic mechanisms, and discover biomarkers. We performed RNA-Seq to investigate gene expression and biological pathways in urinary cells and kidney allograft biopsies during an acute rejection episode and to determine whether urinary cell gene expression patterns are enriched for biopsy transcriptional profiles.METHODSWe performed RNA-Seq of 57 urine samples collected from 53 kidney allograft recipients (patients) with biopsies classified as acute T cell-mediated rejection (TCMR; n = 22), antibody-mediated rejection (AMR; n = 8), or normal/nonspecific changes (No Rejection; n = 27).