Clinical Research Directory

Daratumumab for Late Antibody-Mediated Rejection

The study titled "Daratumumab for Late Antibody-Mediated Rejection in Kidney Transplant Recipients with De Novo Donor-Specific Antibodies" (DARTABMR) is a case-control investigation assessing whether daratumumab is more effective than standard therapies (such as IVIG, plasmapheresis, and rituximab) in treating late antibody-mediated rejection (ABMR) in kidney transplant patients with new donor-specific antibodies (DSA). The research compares outcomes like kidney function stabilization, DSA reduction, and biopsy improvements between patients receiving daratumumab and those on standard treatments. Participants include transplant recipients diagnosed with ABMR more than 12 months post-transplant, with data collected on clinical, immunological, and biopsy parameters before, during, and after treatment. The study emphasizes matching participants based on key variables to minimize bias and will analyze treatment success rates, changes in kidney function and DSA levels, and adverse events.

Proteogenomic Monitoring and Assessment of Kidney Transplant Recipients

Chronic Allograft Nephropathy (CAN)/Interstitial fibrosis and Tubular Atrophy (IFTA) is responsible for most kidney transplant failures. CAN/IFTA on a 3 month kidney biopsy strongly predicts graft survival long term. CAN/IFTA remains a vexing problem for clinicians because current monitoring tools, namely the serum creatinine concentration, are not sensitive to early changes in glomerular filtration rate (GFR) or to histologic damage. Despite advances in prevention of acute rejection (AR), it is still a significant and potentially devastating complication of solid organ transplantation. One strategy to reduce the risk of rejection is to perform kidney biopsies to detect subclinical acute rejection (SCAR) and treat to prevent progression to rejection. There is evidence that treating SCAR can prevent further immune mediated injury to the kidney, a precursor to CAN/IFTA. Kidney biopsies provide better information but are limited due to safety concerns, patient preference and cost issues. Better, early and less invasive markers of CAN/IFTA will allow early intervention as well as improved graft and better patient outcomes. This study seeks to validate specific proteogenomic biomarker panels for AR and CAN/IFTA in a prospective blood, urine and kidney tissue monitoring study of kidney transplant recipients who will be scheduled for standard of care biopsies.