Pretransplant Levels of C-Reactive Protein, Soluble TNF Receptor-1, and CD38+HLADR+ CD8 T Cells Predict Risk of Allograft Rejection in HIV+ Kidney Transplant Recipients

Introduction: HIV-positive (HIV+) kidney transplant recipients exhibit a 2- to 3-fold increased risk of allograft rejection. Dysregulated immune activation in HIV infection persists despite successful antiretroviral therapy and is associated with non-AIDS morbidity, including renal disease. We hypothesized that the pathological levels of inflammation and immune activation associated with chronic HIV infection could have clinical utility in the prediction of rejection in HIV+ kidney recipients. Methods: Prospective cohort study of 22 HIV-negative (HIV-; donor) to HIV+ (recipient) kidney transplant recipients who underwent biomarker assessment pretransplant and were subsequently followed for development of acute rejection. Plasma levels of markers of inflammation (soluble tumor necrosis factor receptor 1 [sTNF-R1] and C-reactive protein [CRP]) and microbial translocation (soluble CD14 and lipopolysaccharide) were measured by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay or chromogenic endpoint assay. Levels of activated (CD38+HLADR+) CD4+ and CD8+ T cells, and T regulatory cells (CD4+CD25highFoxP3+) were measured by flow cytometry. Results: Among the biomarkers evaluated, only the pretransplant levels of sTNF-R1, CRP, and frequencies of CD38+HLADR+ CD8 T cells, were found to be at significantly higher levels among patients who experienced biopsy-proven acute rejection. Confirming our hypothesis, patients with high pretransplant levels of sTNF-R1 or activated CD8+ T cells had a significantly increased 200-day cumulative incidence of biopsy-proven acute rejection (0 vs. 38% for both; P = 0.01). Similarly, pretransplant CRP levels higher than 5 mg/ml were associated with increased risk of acute rejection within the first 6 months post-transplant (0 vs. 43%; P = 0.01). Conclusion: Biomarker-based identification of HIV+ recipients at increased risk for rejection might facilitate individualized induction immunosuppression regimens in this vulnerable patient population.