title: Transplant immuno-diagnostics: crossmatch and antigen detection.
abstract: Identifying and monitoring donor-directed anti-human leukocyte antigen antibodies are a rapidly evolving area of solid organ transplantation. Donor-specific antibodies dictate pre-transplant donor choice and donor-recipient matching and underlie much acute and chronic allograft rejection and loss. The evolution of available technology has driven this progress. Early, labor-intensive, whole-cell assays based on complement-dependent cytotoxicity suffered from poor sensitivity and specificity, technical challenges and lack of precision. Sequential improvement in assay performance included anti-human immunoglobulin-enhanced, complement-dependent cytotoxicity techniques followed by cell-based flow cytometry. However, variable specificity and sensitivity inherent in cell-based testing continued to limit flow cytometry. The introduction of solid-phase assays led to a second revolution in histocompatibility testing with the use of purified antigens bound to artificial surfaces rather than whole cells. These techniques augmented sensitivity and specificity to detect even low-titer antibodies to previously undetected antigens. Identification of complement-activating antibodies is being introduced, but current technology is in the developmental stage. While the detection of alloantibodies has improved dramatically, our comprehension of their importance remains imperfect. Variability in methodology and a lack of standardization limits the clinical application of these tests. In spite of the hurdles that remain, antibody-mediated rejection has become a key target to improve graft survival.
authors.affiliation: Division of Pediatric Nephrology, Stanford University, 300 Pasteur Drive, Room G-306, Palo Alto, CA, 94305, USA. andrew09@stanford.edu.
authors.forename: Andrew M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: South
authors.affiliation: Division of Pediatric Nephrology, Stanford University, 300 Pasteur Drive, Room G-306, Palo Alto, CA, 94305, USA.
authors.forename: Paul C
authors.initials: PC
authors.lastname: Grimm
mesh_terms: D015922:Complement C1q / Q000276:immunology; D003171:Complement Pathway, Classical / Q000276:immunology; D003601:Cytotoxicity Tests, Immunologic / Q000379:methods*; D046148:Donor Selection / Q000379:methods*; D005434:Flow Cytometry; D006084:Graft Rejection / Q000175:diagnosis* / Q000276:immunology; D006085:Graft Survival / Q000276:immunology; D006680:HLA Antigens / Q000032:analysis / Q000276:immunology*; D006650:Histocompatibility Testing / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D007518:Isoantibodies / Q000032:analysis* / Q000276:immunology; D016030:Kidney Transplantation; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D014019:Tissue Donors; D019737:Transplants / Q000276:immunology*
chemical_list: D006680:HLA Antigens; D007518:Isoantibodies; D015922:Complement C1q
keywords: C1q; Complement dependent cytotoxicity; Donor-specific antibody; Histocompatibility; Virtual crossmatch