Clinical Research Directory

Effect of Terlipressin for Intraoperative Blood Pressure Management in Kidney Transplantation

Prospective double blind randomized controlled trial. By randomizing patients undergoing kidney transplantation into a conventional catecholamine drug (dobutamine) blood pressure maintenance group and a terlipressin-complexed dobutamine group, the investigators compared the effect of intraoperative blood pressure maintenance and the dosage of the vasoactive drug, postoperative graft function, delayed graft function, and other related complications between the two groups, in order to demonstrate whether the use of terlipressin for blood pressure regulation during kidney transplantation is superior to the existing treatments.

Comparison of the Effects of General Anesthesia and Combined Spinal-Epidural Anesthesia on Ferroptosis, Humanin and MOTS-c Levels in Renal Transplantation

Renal transplantation is the most effective renal replacement therapy for patients with end-stage renal disease. Ischemia-reperfusion injury may adversely affect graft function and long-term outcomes. Ferroptosis has recently emerged as a potential mechanism involved in ischemia-reperfusion injury, while the mitochondrial-derived peptides humanin and MOTS-c are thought to exert protective effects against oxidative stress. However, the effects of different anesthetic techniques on these biomarkers in kidney transplant recipients have not been investigated. This prospective controlled study aims to compare the effects of sevoflurane general anesthesia (SGA) and combined spinal-epidural anesthesia (CSEA) on serum ferroptosis markers, humanin, and MOTS-c levels in adult kidney transplant recipients. Blood samples will be obtained perioperatively for biomarker analysis. The primary objective of the study is to evaluate the effects of the anesthetic technique on serum ferroptosis markers, humanin, and MOTS-c levels. Secondary objectives include evaluating early graft function and postoperative outcomes by assessing the incidence of delayed graft function, postoperative serum creatinine levels, requirement for dialysis, urine output, length of hospital stay, and the association of these outcomes with perioperative biomarker levels.

Feasibility and Plausible Effectiveness of a Lifestyle Intervention in Kidney Transplant Recipients (HEAL)

The goal of this clinical trial is to learn whether if it is feasible to implement a study of patients receiving kidney transplantation, to learn if these patients will complete selective outcomes measurements, and to examine if a lifestyle intervention may assist with preventing weight gain compared to standard medical care. The main questions it aims to answer are: * Is it feasible to recruit and retain patients who have undergone kidney transplantation into a study to compare standard medical care to standard medical care plus a lifestyle intervention focused on prevention of weight gain? * Will participants engage in the interventions and be compliant to the components of the interventions? * Will there be any difference between the interventions between the interventions for the occurrence of adverse events specific to kidney transplantation? * Will there be initial effectiveness for the standard medical care plus a lifestyle intervention to have a better effect on preventing weight gain compared to standard medical care alone? * Will there be initial effectiveness for the standard medical care plus a lifestyle intervention to have a better effect on body composition compared to standard medical care alone? * Will there be initial effectiveness for the standard medical care plus a lifestyle intervention to have a better effect on fasting glucose compared to standard medical care alone? * Will there be initial effectiveness for the standard medical care plus a lifestyle intervention to have a better effect on fasting insulin compared to standard medical care alone? * Will there be initial effectiveness for the standard medical care plus a lifestyle intervention to have a better effect on insulin sensitivity compared to standard medical care alone? * Will there be initial effectiveness for the standard medical care plus a lifestyle intervention to have a better effect on physical function compared to standard medical care alone? * Will there be initial effectiveness for the standard medical care plus a lifestyle intervention to have a better effect on health-related quality of life compared to standard medical care alone? * Will there be initial effectiveness for the standard medical care plus a lifestyle intervention to have a better effect on changes in dietary intake compared to standard medical care alone? * Will there be initial effectiveness for the standard medical care plus a lifestyle intervention to have a better effect on physical activity and sedentary behavior compared to standard medical care alone? Participants will: * Participants will continue with their standard medical care following kidney transplantation. * Participants only receiving standard medical care will also complete brief monitoring visits at week 6, 12, and 18. * Participants receiving the lifestyle intervention will attend weekly intervention sessions and will be recommended to modify their diet and physical activity behaviors in an effort to prevent weight gain. * Participants will complete outcome measurements as the start of the study and again after 6 months in the study. * After 6 months in the study, participants will also complete a brief intervention and answer other questions about their experience in the study.

Adipose-derived MSC to Treat Rejection in Kidney Transplant Recipients

This research study is being done to learn if an experimental treatment of infusing allogeneic adipose-derived mesenchymal stromal cells (allo-A-MSC ) directly into the renal artery is safe and can help reduce inflammation in the transplanted kidney and treat rejection.

Sparsentan in Posttransplant Immunoglobulin A Nephropathy or Focal Segmental Glomerulosclerosis

To evaluate the safety and efficacy of sparsentan tablets for the treatment of patients with proteinuria after kidney transplantation with once-daily dosing for 36 weeks.

Alloreactive Memory B Lymphocytes and Anti-HLA Sensitization

In transplantation, B lymphocytes are major cellular players in the alloreactive humoral response through the production of antibodies targeting allogeneic HLA molecules expressed by the transplant. In subjects sensitized to HLA antigens, the contribution of pre-existing alloreactive memory B lymphocytes (Bmem) to allograft rejection phenomena after transplantation is now recognized. It has been proposed that the identification of these Bmem during the pre-transplant period could contribute to a better assessment of post-transplant immunological risk, allowing optimization of strategies to prevent humoral rejection. However, knowledge regarding the phenotypic and functional heterogeneity of Bmem as well as their clonal diversity is still extremely limited, not allowing discrimination between pathogenic and non-pathogenic alloreactive humoral responses. Such discrimination requires a better understanding of the modalities of differentiation of alloreactive B lymphocyte responses. To this end, this study aims to characterize the clonal, phenotypic and functional properties of alloreactive Bmem in subjects awaiting renal transplantation and sensitized to HLA antigens.

Double-blind, Randomized, Placebo-controlled, Multicenter Study to Evaluate the Efficacy and Safety of Ravulizumab Administered Intravenously in Adult Participants at High Risk of Delayed Graft Function After Kidney Transplantation

The primary objective of this study is to demonstrate the efficacy of ravulizumab vs placebo in reducing the severity of DGF as measured by time to freedom from dialysis in adult participants who are at high risk of DGF after undergoing transplant of deceased donor kidney.

Impact of Culture of Perfusion Fluid on Donor-derived Infection Management and Outcome in Liver and Kidney Transplant

This study aims to evaluate whether microbiological testing of the perfusion fluid used to transport transplanted organs can help predict the development of infections in liver and kidney transplant recipients, including possible donor-derived infections (infections transmitted from the donor organ). The study will include all liver and kidney transplant recipients with available perfusion fluid culture results from 2021 until the start of the study (retrospective phase) and for two years after study initiation (prospective phase). The study will assess how often high-risk microorganisms are identified in perfusion fluid, whether these findings are associated with complications or infections in recipients, and whether they affect patient outcomes, including mortality.

Risk Factors Associated With the Absence of CMV-specific Cellular Immune Response in the Early Post-transplant Period in Low-risk CMV-seropositive Kidney Transplant Recipients

The goal of this observational study is to identify risk factors associated with the absence of CMV-specific cellular immune response in low-risk CMV-seropositive kidney transplant recipients in the early post-transplant period. The participant population includes adult CMV-seropositive kidney transplant recipients who did not receive antithymocyte globulin (ATG) induction therapy and underwent QuantiFERON-CMV testing within the first 45 days after transplantation. The main question it aims to answer is: \- Is it possible to predict which patients will fail to develop a CMV-specific cellular immune response before day 45 post-transplant in the absence of directly available immune assessment techniques? Researchers will compare patients with reactive QuantiFERON-CMV results to patients with non-reactive or indeterminate results to identify factors associated with the absence of CMV-specific cellular immune response. Participants will have retrospective clinical and laboratory data collected from medical records.

CAR-T Cell Therapy for Desensitization in Kidney Transplantation

This research study is for people who have been waiting for a kidney transplant for at least one year, and who have a cPRA of 99.5% or higher. Having a cPRA of 99.5% or higher means that your immune system would reject 99.5% of kidneys available for transplant. The study will test whether new products called Chimeric Antigen Receptor T Cells (CAR T Cells), when given with chemotherapy, is safe and will reduce cPRA. The main study will last up to 2 years: Participants will have up to 30 clinic or hospital visits over a one-year period. If a transplant takes place, there will be 9 more visits after transplant. Long term follow up is required by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for 15 years after receiving CAR T cell. The primary objective is to evaluate the safety and feasibility of administering CART BCMA + huCART-19 following lymphodepletion, including determination of optimal tolerated regimen (OTR) and/or recommended phase 2 regimen, according to the incidence of dose limiting toxicity (DLT) in highly sensitized patients awaiting kidney transplant.

Perceptions of Kidney Transplant Recipients Regarding the Role of Artificial Intelligence in Medicine

The AITX study is an international, multicenter survey exploring how kidney transplant recipients perceive artificial intelligence (AI) in medicine and, specifically, a system that predicts graft loss risk. Through an open-ended online questionnaire distributed across transplant centers and patient associations in France and the United States, the study captures patients' expectations, concerns, and the perceived impact of AI-driven prediction on their daily lives. Responses are analyzed using large language models (LLMs) with systematic human verification. The study aims to ensure that the deployment of AI in transplantation is ethical, transparent, and patient-centered.

Advancing Transplantation Outcomes in Children

This is a pediatric kidney transplant study comparing the safety and efficacy of an immunosuppressive regimen of belatacept and sirolimus to tacrolimus and Mycophenolate Mofetil (MMF). Two hundred participants will be randomized (1:1) to one of two groups within 24 hours following the transplant procedure. The duration of the study from time of transplant to the primary endpoint is 12-24 months.

Study of Combined Kidney and Blood Stem Cell Transplant From a Brother or Sister Donor

The purpose of this study is to find out if an investigational treatment will allow kidney transplant recipients to better accept their new kidney and stop immunosuppressive medicines. This study is for kidney transplant recipients who receive a kidney from a sibling donor. The investigational treatment is started after kidney transplant. It begins with a regimen of a drug called rabbit anti-thymocyte globulin (rATG) combined with radiation therapy (known as total lymphoid irradiation, or TLI) to the lymph nodes and spleen. This is followed by an infusion of blood stem cells, which will be donated by the same sibling who donated their kidney. Researchers think that this treatment allows immune cells from the donor and recipient to live side by side, a condition referred to as "mixed chimerism." Mixed chimerism may help create a state of "tolerance" in kidney transplant recipients in which all immunosuppressive medications can be stopped without rejection of the transplanted kidney. This study will test whether (1) the investigational treatment will allow patients to stop immunosuppressive medications after their kidney transplant and (2) if the treatment impacts the rate of kidney rejection and the side effects of immunosuppressive medications.

Allogeneic Regulatory Dendritic Cell (DCreg) Renal Study

This study will evaluate the safety and feasibility of treatment involving a single infusion of donor-derived regulatory dendritic cells (DCreg) in first time, living donor renal transplant recipients. DCreg will be prepared from monocytes obtained by leukapheresis from prospective (non-mobilized) living kidney donors and infused into the respective recipients 7 days before renal transplantation. This study will enroll 28 subjects (14 recipients, 14 donors). The duration of follow-up will be: * 1 week following the leukapheresis procedure for donors and * 2 years following their DCreg infusion for kidney recipients.

Immunogenicity of HPV Vaccine in Transplant Recipients.

To measure levels of HPV antibodies in post-solid-organ transplant recipients who have gotten the HPV9 vaccine.

GraftAssure Lowering Allograft rejeCTIon by Combination- (GALACTIC) Trial

The GALACTIC Registry study purpose is to validate the Combination Model-score (CM-score) for increased accuracy in the percentage of the positive predictive value (PPV) of allograft rejection results for the GraftAssure (GraftAssureCore and GraftAssureDx) assay. This will also be correlated with the biopsy yield and treatment decisions. The GraftAssure assay is a diagnostic test intended for the quantitative measurement of dd-cfDNA in plasma from kidney transplant recipients. The test is minimally invasive, and is intended to be used in conjunction with standard clinical assessment and other laboratory findings as an aid in the detection of allograft rejection.

Use of Predigraft in Kidney Transplant Patients

Kidney transplantation is the treatment of choice for end-stage renal disease in terms of morbidity, mortality, and cost-benefit ratio. Graft loss is mainly related to the occurrence of rejection. Hence the importance of regular monitoring to check that the graft is functioning properly, to adapt immunosuppressive treatments and to check for side effects related to the immunosuppressed state. In conventional management, the patient is seen at regular intervals (ranging from 2 weeks to 3 months) in the referral transplant centre with recourse to hospitalisation if necessary. In the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, in order to reduce the risks of contamination, teleconsultations have been proposed to replace face-to-face consultations. Predigraft software facilitates remote patient assessment. This software provides an estimate of the probability of renal graft survival at 3, 5 and 7 years of the assessment based on an algorithm developed and validated by the U970 unit (Loupy A et al, BMJ 2019). The software also provides an application for patients allowing secure data transfer (biological analyses, blood pressure, weight). This allows the assessment of the need for additional patient evaluation based on usual monitoring parameters (creatinine, proteinuria) that can be done in the analysis laboratory near the patient's home. A first evaluation of the use and acceptability among care professionals has been conducted between April and June 2020 and showed excellent results. It is now necessary to obtain real-life data to evaluate the use of the tool among patients and healthcare professionals and its impact on the organisation of care. This is a prospective interventional study with minimal risks and constraints on the active file of transplant patients followed in ambulatory care for a period of 12 months. The objective of this study will be to evaluate the use of the Predigraft platform by kidney transplant patients.

Empagliflozin Treatment in Kidney Transplant Recipients

Kidney transplantation improves the health and quality of life for those Veterans with end stage kidney disease (ESKD). While early patient and graft survival are excellent, long-term outcomes continue to be challenging. Patient death with existing kidney graft function occurs in about half of all recipients over time. This is primarily due to the development of cardiovascular disease in a patient population with multiple preexisting cardiac disease risk factors. There has been little progress in improving outcomes in this area for over two decades. Recent studies in chronic kidney disease (CKD) patients using SGLT2 inhibitors (SGLT2i), regardless of the presence of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM), results in both kidney protective and cardiac protective impacts and improved patient outcomes. However, kidney transplant recipients (KTRs) were excluded from these clinical trials due to concerns that these agents promote infection, diminish graft function, and may alter immunosuppressive drug levels that are the mainstay of patient's transplant therapy. There are limited published data of SGLT2i treatment of selected KTRs.

MYREPTIC-N® or MY-REPT® in Stable Patients After Kidney Transplant Recipients

The purpose of this study is to Evaluate the Efficacy and Safety of MYREPTIC-N® or MY-REPT® in Stable Patients after Kidney Transplant Recipients

Study to Evaluate the Pharmacokinetics and Tolerability of Tacrolimus in Kidney Transplant Recipients.

The purpose of this study is to evaluate the pharmacokinetics and tolerability of Tacrolimus tablet(TacroBell) in kidney transplant recipients.

Evaluation of Thiosulfate Enhanced Organ Preservation Solution in Kidney Transplantation

End-stage renal disease (ESRD) is a significant clinical problem for which dialysis or transplantation is required. The current need for kidneys for transplantation vastly exceeds the supply available from live donors, necessitating the use of kidneys from deceased donors. However, kidneys from deceased donors are associated with reduced viability, as lack of blood supply upon cardiac death increases tissue damage. In addition, the standard protocol for cold preservation of donor kidneys between procurement and transplantation increases the risk of delayed donor kidney function by 23% for every 6-hours of storage. Moreover, compared to other organs, the kidney is particularly prone to transplantation-induced injury due to its high metabolic activities and oxygen consumption. Hence, any minor disturbances in blood supply can easily lead to kidney injury. Therefore, it is not surprising that deceased donor kidneys have a low tolerance for damage associated with lack of blood supply. The focus of the investigators research has been to pioneer the development and supplementation of existing kidney preservation solutions with novel hydrogen sulfide (H2S) donor molecules to improve kidney viability for clinical transplantation. Specifically, the investigators demonstrated that supplementation of standard kidney preservation solutions with non-clinically viable H2S donor molecules significantly increased donor kidney protection and prolonged transplant recipient survival in murine and porcine models of kidney transplantation. Having shown the same salutary effect using sodium thiosulfate (STS; a clinically viable H2S donor drug) in rat kidney transplantation, the investigators aim to repeat this work using STS in porcine and clinical kidney transplantation. This single-blind study will enroll participants receiving a kidney transplant. Through randomization, half of the participants will receive STS through administration into the pump the kidney is placed on after procurement from the donor and before transplant to the recipient. Participants will be followed for 1-year post transplant where blood and urine will be collected to determine graft function.

Tacrolimus and Risk Factors for Glucose Metabolism Disorders in Kidney Transplant Patients

Many people who receive a kidney transplant develop problems with how their body processes sugar (glucose). This includes conditions like prediabetes and diabetes, which can lead to more health issues, such as heart problems and infections. One of the main medications used after a kidney transplant, called tacrolimus, can contribute to these sugar problems. Tacrolimus helps protect the new kidney, but it can also harm the cells in the pancreas that produce insulin, a hormone that controls blood sugar. Other factors, such as stress on the body and insulin resistance, can make things worse. The effect of tacrolimus on blood sugar may depend on how the body processes the drug. Some people break down tacrolimus quickly (fast metabolizers), so they need higher doses to reach the right level in their blood. Others break it down more slowly (slow metabolizers) and require lower doses. Doctors can measure how fast someone metabolizes tacrolimus using aparameter called the concentration-to-dose (C/D) ratio. This study aims to find out what increases the risk of developing blood sugar problems after a kidney transplant. It will focus on how quickly patients process tacrolimus and whether this affects their risk of developing diabetes. The study will also look at how common these issues are in kidney transplant patients in Poland.

Kidney Protective Jacket

This is a safety study designed to investigate the safety of utilizing the Kidney Protective Jacket (KPJ)™ during kidney transplantation. In general, we aim to use the device in all possible recipients, aiming to demonstrate its safety in the variable circumstances that may arise during kidney transplantation, e.g. single or multiple renal vessels, different-sized kidneys, and variable recipient size and weight.

Assessment of Biomarker-Guided CNI Substitution In Kidney Transplantation

800 adult first time kidney transplant recipients will be enrolled in the Observational Study and followed to evaluate their Human Leukocyte Antigen (HLA)-DR/DQ molecular mismatch (mMM) score as a risk-stratifying prognostic biomarker. Six months after transplant the study will identify those who meet the eligibility criteria for the Nested Randomized Control Trial (RCT). 300 eligible subjects will be randomized 2:1 to abatacept or Standard of care (SOC) in the randomization and followed for 18 months monitoring for safety and improvement in renal function, neurocognitive function, and a life participation patient reported outcome measure (PROM). The primary objective of the Observational Study is to test the validity of the HLA-DR/DQ mMM score as a prognostic biomarker for stratification of post-transplant alloimmune risk. Whereas the objective of the Nested RCT is to test whether a superior outcome in kidney function (primary endpoint), as well as secondary endpoints (neurocognitive function, and life participation PROM), will be achieved in patients who are transitioned from Tacrolimus (TAC) to abatacept, while maintaining efficacy (freedom from biopsy proven acute rejection).