Transfusion-related acute lung injury/transfusion-associated circulatory overload in a child with non-transfusion dependent thalassemia and aplastic crisis due to acute parvovirus B19 infection.

We present a never-transfused girl with thalassemia intermedia who was admitted for febrile aplastic crisis due to human parvovirus B19. After a first transfusion of packed red blood cells, she developed pulmonary oedema. She improved with supportive care including the use of intravenous diuretics.

Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products as Potential Therapeutic Strategy against COVID-19 and Immune-Related Disorders.

Advanced Therapy Medicinal Products (ATMPs) comprise a heterogenous class of innovative medicinal products, which further require extensive preclinical and clinical assessments before their broader use in the general population [...

Frequency distribution of HLA class I and II alleles in Greek population and their significance in orchestrating the National Donor Registry Program.

Human leukocyte antigens (HLA) represent one of the most polymorphic systems in humans, responsible for the identification of foreign antigens and the presentation of immune responses. Therefore, HLA is considered to play a major role in human disorders, donor-recipient matching and transplantation outcomes. This study aimed to determine the HLA class I and II alleles and haplotypes in the Greek population.

Assessment of Donor Derived Cell Free DNA (dd-cfDNA) at Surveillance and at Clinical Suspicion of Acute Rejection in Renal Transplantation.

In our prospective, unicenter cohort study, we collected blood samples from 30 newly kidney transplanted patients, at month 1, 2, 3, and 5 for dd-cfDNA analysis, along with creatinine/eGFR and DSA monitoring, and from 32 patients who underwent an indication biopsy and whose dd-cfDNA levels were measured at the time of biopsy and 1 month afterwards. Fourteen of 32 (43.8%) patients in the biopsy group were diagnosed with TCMR and 5 of 32 (15.

Exploring the Immunomodulatory Properties of Stem Cells in Combating COVID-19: Can We Expect More?

Since the first appearance of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus-2 (SARS-CoV-2) in December 2019, the disease has displayed a remarkable interindividual variability in the global population, resulting in different mortality and morbidity rates. Still, an effective cure against SARS-CoV-2 has not been developed, and therefore, alternative therapeutic protocols must also be evaluated. Considering that stem cells, especially Mesenchymal Stromal Cells (MSCs), are characterized by both regenerative and immunomodulatory properties and that their safety and tolerability have been investigated previously, these cells could potentially be applied against coronavirus disease 19 (COVID-19).

Clinical Outcome of Kidney Transplant Recipients with C1q-Binding De Novo Donor Specific Antibodies: A Single-Center Experience.

Complement activation by HLA antibodies is a key component of immune-mediated graft injury. We examined the clinical outcomes of kidney transplant recipients with complement-fixing de novo donor-specific antibodies (dnDSA) who were followed in our center. The C1q-binding ability was retrospectively assessed in 69 patients with dnDSA and mean fluorescence intensity (MFI) values > 2000 out of the 1325 kidney transplant recipients who were screened for DSA between 2015 and 2019.

The Influence of Antibodies against Angiotensin II Type-1 Receptor on the Outcome of Kidney Transplantation: A Single-Center Retrospective Study.

Allo- and autoimmune mechanisms are involved in kidney allograft rejection and loss. This study investigates the impact of anti-angiotensin II type-1 receptor antibodies (anti-AT1RAbs) detected alone or in association with HLA donor-specific antibodies (HLA-DSAs) on the outcome of kidney transplantation (KTx). Anti-AT1RAbs and HLA-DSAs were detected in 71 kidney transplant (KT) recipients who developed biopsy-proven acute or chronic active T-cell rejection (TCMR) ( = 51) or antibody-mediated rejection (ABMR) ( = 20), forming the rejection group (RG).

Evaluation of Kidney Donor Risk Index/Kidney Donor Profile Index as Predictor Tools of Deceased-Donor Kidney Transplant Outcomes in a Greek Cohort.

The Kidney Donor Risk Index (KDRI) and Kidney Donor Profile Index (KDPI) have been developed to assess deceased-donor graft quality, although validation of their utility outside the USA remains limited. This single-center retrospective cohort study evaluated the ability of KDRI and KDPI to predict transplant outcomes in a Greek cohort. The efficacy of KDRI, KDPI, and donor's age in predicting death-censored graft failure was primarily assessed.

T cell receptor gene repertoire profiles in subgroups of patients with chronic lymphocytic leukemia bearing distinct genomic aberrations.

Background: Microenvironmental interactions of the malignant clone with T cells are critical throughout the natural history of chronic lymphocytic leukemia (CLL). Indeed, clonal expansions of T cells and shared clonotypes exist between different CLL patients, strongly implying clonal selection by antigens. Moreover, immunogenic neoepitopes have been isolated from the clonotypic B cell receptor immunoglobulin sequences, offering a rationale for immunotherapeutic approaches.

Design and Fabrication of Artificial Stem Cell Microenvironments.

Major key features of stem cells' functions are self-renewal and their capacity for differentiation, allowing for maintain a proper stem cell reservoir as well as producing lineage-committed cells [...

An Approach to Identify HLA Class II Immunogenic Epitopes in the Greek Population through Machine Learning Algorithms.

Current pre-transplantation routine matching involves serum anti-HLA antibodies quantification but cannot always preclude unfavorable graft outcomes. Epitope-based matching is proposed as a more precise approach, but to date no epitope-matching algorithm provides a satisfactory predictive tool for transplantation outcomes. In this study, anti-HLA-II loci responses from 1748 patients were analyzed with unsupervised machine learning algorithms, namely principal component analysis (PCA) and antigenic distances, projected as dendrograms.

Donor with HLA-C2 is associated with acute rejection following liver transplantation in Southern Chinese.

Apart from presenting peptides to T cells, class I HLA molecules serve as ligands for killer cell immunoglobulin-like receptor (KIRs) and regulate the response of natural killer (NK) cells. The role played by HLA and KIR in the acute rejection (AR) following liver transplantation has been controversial. In this retrospective study, we assessed the influence of class I HLA alleles, HLA matching between donor-recipient pairs, recipient KIR and donor HLA ligands on AR following liver transplantation in southern Chinese.

First Characterization of ADAMTS-4 in Kidney Tissue and Plasma of Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease-A Potential Novel Diagnostic Indicator.

Background: We have previously shown that metzincin protease ADAMTS-4 accompanies renal fibrogenesis, as it appears in the blood of hemodialysis patients. Methods: Native kidney (NKB) and kidney transplant (TXCI) biopsy samples as well as plasma from patients with various stages of CKD were compared to controls. In paired analysis, 15 TXCI samples were compared with their zero-time biopsies (TX0).

Impact of de novo donor-specific HLA antibodies on pediatric kidney transplant prognosis in patients with acute declined or stable allograft function.

Background: This retrospective multicenter long-term cohort study investigates de novo donor-specific HLA antibodies (dnDSA) impact on allograft survival in pediatric kidney transplantation (KTx), depending on allograft function at dnDSA detection.

Methods: Seventy patients with dnDSA screening in the context of acute allograft dysfunction (AAD) (>50% serum creatinine increase) or routine follow-up were included during a 20-year period. Number of dnDSA specificities and HLA total mean fluorescence intensity (MFI-sum) were collected.

Hidden Patterns of Anti-HLA Class I Alloreactivity Revealed Through Machine Learning.

Detection of alloreactive anti-HLA antibodies is a frequent and mandatory test before and after organ transplantation to determine the antigenic targets of the antibodies. Nowadays, this test involves the measurement of fluorescent signals generated through antibody-antigen reactions on multi-beads flow cytometers. In this study, in a cohort of 1,066 patients from one country, anti-HLA class I responses were analyzed on a panel of 98 different antigens.

Distribution of MICA alleles and haplotypes associated with HLA-B in Greek population.

Introduction: The Major Histocompatibility Complex Class I-related chain A gene (MICA) is a highly polymorphic functional gene located close to the HLA-B locus. Certain MICA alleles have been related to inflammatory and autoimmune diseases while MICA antibodies have been implicated in organ allograft rejection or graft-versus-host disease (GVHD).

Aim: The aim of this study was to identify the frequencies of MICA alleles and MICA ~ HLA-B haplotypes in the Greek population since, as far as we know, these data are still limited.

The Role of HLA and KIR Immunogenetics in BK Virus Infection after Kidney Transplantation.

BK virus (BKV) is a polyomavirus with high seroprevalence in the general population with an unremarkable clinical presentation in healthy people, but a potential for causing serious complications in immunosuppressed transplanted patients. Reactivation or primary infection in kidney allograft recipients may lead to allograft dysfunction and subsequent loss. Currently, there is no widely accepted specific treatment for BKV infection and reduction of immunosuppressive therapy is the mainstay therapy.

A Europe wide acceptable mismatch program will enable transplantation of long waiting highly sensitised patients with a compatible donor.

Immunisation against Human Leucocyte Antigens (HLA) can be caused by pregnancy, blood transfusion, or organ transplants. The HLA antibody status of a given patient significantly influences their access and waiting time to transplant. For some highly sensitised patients (HSP) there is hardly any suitable donor available in the deceased donor pool of their allocation organisation and therefore they wait a very long time before being offered a kidney for transplant.

Patterns of 1,748 Unique Human Alloimmune Responses Seen by Simple Machine Learning Algorithms.

Allele specific antibody response against the polymorphic system of HLA is the allogeneic response marker determining the immunological risk for graft acceptance before and after organ transplantation and therefore routinely studied during the patient's workup. Experimentally, bead bound antigen- antibody reactions are detected using a special multicolor flow cytometer (Luminex). Routinely for each sample, antibody responses against 96 different HLA antigen groups are measured simultaneously and a 96-dimensional immune response vector is created.

Towards uniformity in the definition of acceptable mismatches for highly sensitized patients.

The Eurotransplant (The Eurotransplant International Foundation) acceptable mismatch programme has been shown to be a successful tool to enhance transplantation of highly sensitized patients(HSPs). However, patients with rare HLA phenotypes in relation to the Eurotransplant donor population remain on the waiting list. EUROSTAM is an European Union funded project to explore the feasibility of a Europe-wide acceptable mismatch programme enabling transplantation of HSPs with rare HLA phenotypes within their own organ exchange organization.

HLA Polymorphism Affects Risk of Mutation of Gene and Clinical Severity of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy in a Southern Chinese Population.

Immune-mediated pathology has been thought to be an important factor contributing to Duchenne muscular dystrophy (DMD). Allele frequencies of certain HLA types are known to differ between patients with dystrophinopathies and healthy controls with low-resolution HLA gene typing data in limit reports. Using Polymerase chain reactionsequence based typing (PCR-SBT) to genotype 64 children with DMD in , -B,-C, -DRB1, and locus and 503 healthy controls in , - locus, this study aimed to investigate associations of specific alleles with, and their possible roles in the development and clinical phenotypic severity of DMD.

When type 1 diabetes meets celiac disease.

Type1 diabetes (T1D) and celiac disease (CD) may occur together. HLA-DQ8 and DQ2 are key genetic risk factors in both. Overall, the patients with co-existing T1D and CD (T1D+CD) were shown to have HLA profile more similar to patients with T1D than those with CD.

HLA allele and haplotype diversity in the Croatian population: State of the art.

The aim of this report was to compare our data with data presented in the European Federation for Immunogenetics (EFI) catalogue (version 1.0) and to evaluate whether or not current (CUR) HLA alleles found in the Croatian population fall into the same categories of common (COM) or well-documented (WD) HLA alleles as those listed in the EFI catalogue. Among 237 HLA-A, -B, -DRB1 alleles observed in the Croatian population so far, 181 alleles were observed ≥3 times.