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Topic Review
Ischemia Reperfusion Injury in Kidney Transplantation
Cardiovascular disease (CVD) remains one of the leading causes for increased morbidity and mortality in chronic kidney disease (CKD). Kidney transplantation is the preferred treatment option for CKD G5. Improved perioperative and postoperative care, personalized immunosuppressive regimes, and refined matching procedures of kidney transplants improves cardiovascular health in the early posttransplant period. However, the long-term burden of CVD is considerable.
  • 767
  • 20 May 2022
Topic Review
Volatile Anesthetic-Induced Organ Protection
Ischemia reperfusion injury (IRI) is inevitable in kidney transplantation and negatively impacts graft and patient outcome. Reperfusion takes place in the recipient and most of the injury following ischemia and reperfusion occurs during this reperfusion phase; therefore, the intra-operative period seems an attractive window of opportunity to modulate IRI and improve short- and potentially long-term graft outcome. Commonly used volatile anesthetics such as sevoflurane and isoflurane have been shown to interfere with many of the pathophysiological processes involved in the injurious cascade of IRI. 
  • 764
  • 29 Apr 2021
Topic Review
Endothelial Dysfunction Syndromes after Allogeneic Stem Cell Transplantation
Hemato-poietic stem cell transplantation is associated with significant endothelial dysfunction, which may result in severe complications. Endothelial dysfunction induces the expression of multiple substances including, cell adhesion molecules, pro-inflammatory cytokines, and coagulation factors resulting in activation of the complement system, and promoting a procoagulant and proinflammatory state. The pathophysiological process that mediates the endothelial damage is not clearly understood and the aim of this study is a comprehensive review of the existing knowledge. Moreover, the levels of soluble molecules released in the systemic circulation as a result of endothelial damage may serve as biomarkers for the early diagnosis and the pre-emptive treatment of post-transplant syndromes. The review of the existing literature presented in detail shows that the ideal biomarker with sufficient sensitivity and specificity for the early diagnosis of post-transplant complications does not currently exist. Future studies should focus on the identification of novel biomarkers with sufficient specificity and sensitivity. 
  • 764
  • 10 Feb 2023
Topic Review
Adipose-Derived Stem/Stromal Cells in Kidney Transplantation
Kidney transplantation (KT) is the gold standard treatment of end-stage renal disease. Among the many peri-operative complications that can jeopardize transplant outcomes, ischemia–reperfusion injury (IRI) deserves special consideration as it is associated with delayed graft function, acute rejection, and premature transplant loss. Adipose stem/stromal cells (ASCs) possess specific characteristics that could help prevent, reduce, or reverse IRI. 
  • 762
  • 22 Nov 2021
Topic Review
Microbiota in Liver Transplantation and Related Biliary Complications
Liver transplantation as a treatment option for end-stage liver diseases is associated with a relevant risk for complications. On the one hand, immunological factors and associated chronic graft rejection are major causes of morbidity and carry an increased risk of mortality due to liver graft failure. On the other hand, infectious complications have a major impact on patient outcomes. In addition, abdominal or pulmonary infections, and biliary complications, including cholangitis, are common complications in patients after liver transplantation and can also be associated with a risk for mortality. Thereby, these patients already suffer from gut dysbiosis at the time of liver transplantation due to their severe underlying disease, causing end-stage liver failure. Despite an impaired gut-liver axis, repeated antibiotic therapies can cause major changes in the gut microbiome.
  • 705
  • 21 Apr 2023
Topic Review
Liver Transplantation for Perihilar Cholangiocarcinoma
Cholangiocarcinoma (CCA) encompasses all malignant neoplasms arising from the epithelial cells of the biliary tree. About 40% of CCAs are perihilar, involving the bile ducts distal to the second-order biliary branches and proximal to the cystic duct implant. About two-thirds of pCCAs are considered unresectable at the time of diagnosis or exploration. When resective surgery is deemed unfeasible, liver transplantation (LT) could be an effective alternative. The overall survival rates after LT at 1 and 3 years are 91% and 81%, respectively. The overall five-year survival rate after transplantation is 73% (79% for patients with underlying PSC and 63% for de novo pCCA). Multicenter case series reported a 5-year disease-free survival rate of ~65%.
  • 703
  • 30 May 2023
Topic Review
Ischemia-Reperfusion Injury Driving Oxidative Stress in Organ Transplantation
During organ procurement, redox-stress triggered ischemia-reperfusion injury (IRI) is inevitable, which in addition to pre-existing damage negatively affects such organs. 
  • 683
  • 09 Jan 2023
Topic Review
Immunometabolic Therapeutic Targets of Graft-versus-Host Disease
Allogeneic hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (allo-HSCT) is a curative option in the treatment of aggressive malignant and non-malignant blood disorders. However, the benefits of allo-HSCT can be compromised by graft-versus-host disease (GvHD), a prevalent and morbid complication of allo-HSCT. GvHD occurs when donor immune cells mount an alloreactive response against host antigens due to histocompatibility differences between the donor and host, which may result in extensive tissue injury. The reprogramming of cellular metabolism is a feature of GvHD that is associated with the differentiation of donor CD4+ cells into the pathogenic Th1 and Th17 subsets along with the dysfunction of the immune-suppressive protective T regulatory cells (Tregs). The activation of glycolysis and glutaminolysis with concomitant changes in fatty acid oxidation metabolism fuel the anabolic activities of the proliferative alloreactive microenvironment characteristic of GvHD. Thus, metabolic therapies such as glycolytic enzyme inhibitors and fatty acid metabolism modulators are a promising therapeutic strategy for GvHD.
  • 679
  • 22 Nov 2021
Topic Review
Operational Tolerance in Liver Transplantation
More than half a century ago, Billingham and Medawar described the phenomenon of acquired immunologic tolerance to transplant antigens by successfully grafting the skin of a calf onto its fraternal twin. Induction of immune tolerance decreases the risk of graft rejection after solid organ transplantation and thus reduces the need for immunosuppression and improves the survival of transplanted organs. Billingham’s work was followed by the first successful kidney transplant in 1954, and so launched the worldwide search for methods to induce immune tolerance and to hold graft rejection at bay. Transplant tolerance represents the holy grail for transplant immunology: a state where the allograft is accepted by the recipient in the absence of IS treatment. There are multiple types of tolerance including full immunological tolerance, operational tolerance (OT), or IS minimization, sometimes referred to as “prope tolerance”.
  • 667
  • 05 May 2021
Topic Review
Ex Vivo Lung Perfusion
Compared to static cold storage (SCS), ex vivo lung perfusion (EVLP) offers clinicians unrivalled opportunity for rigorous objective assessment of donor lungs in conditions replicating normal physiology, thus allowing for better informed decision-making in suitability assessments. EVLP additionally offers a platform for the delivery of intravascular or intrabronchial therapies to metabolically active tissue aiming to treat existing lung injuries. In the future, EVLP may be employed to provide a pre-transplant environment optimized to prevent negative outcomes such as primary graft dysfunction (PGD) or rejection post-transplant.
  • 663
  • 09 Oct 2021
Topic Review
Donor Factors for Allogenic Adipose-Derived Stem Cell Transplantation
Adipose tissue is a well-known source of adipose-derived stem cells (ADSCs). The current research on adipose stem cell harvest describes quantitative and qualitative differences that could be influenced by different donor conditions and donor sites and could further modify the clinical results.
  • 655
  • 04 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Contemporary Biomarkers for Renal Transplantation
Renal transplantation (RT) is the preferred treatment for end-stage renal disease. However, clinical challenges persist, i.e., early detection of graft dysfunction, timely identification of rejection episodes, personalization of immunosuppressive therapy, and prediction of long-term graft survival. Biomarkers have emerged as valuable tools to address these challenges and revolutionize RT patient care. 
  • 655
  • 09 Aug 2023
Topic Review
Immunosuppression and Liver Transplantation
In liver transplant patients, solid tumors and post-transplant lymphoproliferative disorders (PTLD) have emerged as significant long-term mortality causes. Additionally, it is assumed that de novo malignancy (DNM) after liver transplantation (LT) is the second-leading cause of death after cardiovascular complications. Well-established risk factors for PTLD and solid tumors are calcineurin inhibitors (CNIs), tacrolimus (TAC), and cyclosporine, the cornerstones of all immunosuppressive (IS) therapies used after LT.
  • 640
  • 05 Jul 2021
Topic Review
Cold Ischaemia Time and Living Donor Kidney Transplantation
The best therapy for patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD) is kidney transplantation. Results underline the need to keep cold ischaemia time (CIT) as short as possible in living donor kidney transplantation (LDKT) (ideally < 4 h), as a shorter CIT in LDKT is associated with a statistically significant lower incidence of DGF and higher graft survival compared to a prolonged CIT. However, clinical impact seems limited, and therefore, in LDKT programmes in which the CIT might be prolonged, such as kidney exchange programmes, the benefits outweigh the risks. To minimize these risks, it is worth considering including CIT in kidney allocation algorithms and in general take precautions to protect high risk donor/recipient combinations.
  • 634
  • 06 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Endothelial Dysfunction after Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation
Endothelial dysfunction (ED) is frequently encountered in transplant medicine. After hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT), ED participates in the pathogenesis of various complications such as sinusoidal obstruction syndrome/veno-occlusive disease (SOS/VOD), graft-versus-host disease (GVHD), transplant-associated thrombotic microangiopathy (TA-TMA), idiopathic pneumonia syndrome (IPS), capillary leak syndrome (CLS), and engraftment syndrome (ES).
  • 616
  • 29 Mar 2022
Topic Review
SARS-CoV-2 in Kidney Transplant Recipients
The COVID-19 pandemic has had a striking impact on kidney transplantation globally. Patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) and kidney transplant patients are one of the populations most vulnerable to the risks of COVID-19. In the United States alone, there are more than half a million people living with end stage renal disease (ESRD).More than 105,234 kidney transplants were performed in 2019 all over the globe. After the outbreak of COVID-19, all surgeries were stopped as an early response to the pandemic. A drastic fall in the number of kidney transplants was observed, with a fall rate of 59.2% from the 105,234-plus kidney transplants (KTx) in 2019 to 42,948 KTx in 2020.
  • 608
  • 09 Feb 2022
Topic Review
Portal Hemodynamics after Living-Donor Liver Transplantation
When a partial liver graft is transplanted into a recipient with portal hypertension, it is subject to sinusoidal shear stress, which, in good measure, is essential for regeneration. However, portal hyperperfusion which exceeds the capacity of the graft results in the small-for-size syndrome manifested by ascites, cholestasis and coagulopathy. The intraoperative assessment of portal hemodynamics in living-donor liver transplant should be standard practice. Inflow modulation in properly selected patients offers a point-of-care solution to alter portal inflow to the graft with a view to improve recipient outcomes. In patients with small (anatomically/metabolically) grafts, using inflow modulation can result in outcomes equivalent to those in patients in whom larger grafts are used.
  • 608
  • 03 Apr 2023
Topic Review
Matrix Metalloproteinases and Cardiovascular Disease
Matrix metalloproteinases (MMPs) are a family of 25 proteolytic enzymes (zinc-dependent endopeptidases) present in the extracellular matrix whose known role is to degrade its structural components. A primary role of these proteases has been that of cleaving extracellular matrix proteins under certain physiological and pathological conditions. Physiologically, they are involved in different processes, mediating different activities of cell proliferation and differentiation and tissue repair, as well as in the mechanisms of apoptosis and angiogenesis, or cell migration.
  • 597
  • 02 Aug 2023
Topic Review
Lung Transplant Models in Mice and Rats
Lung transplantation (LTx) is the ultimate curative treatment for end-stage pulmonary disease. Lung transplantation improves the outcome and quality of life of patients with end-stage pulmonary disease. Over the past decades, translational experiments in animal models have led to a better understanding of physiology and immunopathology following the lung transplant procedure. Small animal models (e.g., rats and mice) are mostly used in experiments regarding immunology and pathobiology and are preferred over large animal models due to the ethical aspects, the cost–benefit balance, and the high throughput possibility.
  • 588
  • 21 Feb 2022
Topic Review
Nutrition Disturbances and Metabolic Complications in Kidney Transplant
Nutrition disturbances occur at all stages of chronic kidney disease and progress with the decrease of the kidney filtration rate. Kidney transplantation (KTx) as the best form of kidney replacement therapy poses various nutritional challenges. Prior to transplantation, recipients often present with mild to advanced nutrition disturbances. A functioning allograft not only relieves uremia, acidosis, and electrolyte disturbances, but also resumes other kidney functions such as erythropoietin production and vitamin D3 metabolism. KTx recipients represent a whole spectrum of undernutrition and obesity. Since following transplantation, patients are relieved of most dietary restrictions and appetite disturbances; they resume old nutrition habits that result in weight gain. The immunosuppressive regimen often predisposes them to dyslipidemia, glucose intolerance, and hypertension. Moreover, most recipients present with chronic kidney graft disease at long-term follow-ups, usually in stages G2–G3T. Therefore, the nutritional status of KTx patients requires careful monitoring.
  • 584
  • 05 Dec 2022
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