Costimulation pathway blockade in kidney transplant recipients with de-novo rheumatoid arthritis

The use of non-transplant biologics in solid organ transplant recipients: A practical review for the frontline clinician

Biologics have become the forefront of medicine for management of autoimmune conditions, leading to improved quality of life. Many autoimmune conditions occur in solid organ transplant (SOT) recipients and persist following transplant. However, the use of biologics in this patient population is not well studied, and questions arise related to risk of infection and adjustments to induction and maintenance immunosuppression. Guidelines have been published highlighting management strategies of biologics around the time of elective surgical procedures, but this is not always feasible in urgent situations, especially with deceased donor transplantation. The aim of this review is to summarize the current literature regarding the use of these agents in solid organ transplant recipients, and specifically address induction and maintenance immunosuppression, as well as the need for alternative infective prevention strategies to create a practical reference for the frontline clinician, when faced with this complex clinical scenario.

Immunosuppressive effect of Columbianadin on maturation, migration, allogenic T cell stimulation and phagocytosis capacity of TNF-α induced dendritic cells

ETHNOPHARMACOLOGICAL RELEVANCE

Angelicae pubescentis radix (APR) has a long history in the treatment of rheumatoid arthritis (RA) in China. It has the effects of dispelling wind to eliminate dampness, removing arthralgia and stopping pain in the Chinese Pharmacopeia, but its mechanisms was unclear. Columbianadin (CBN) was one of the main bioactive compounds of APR, and has many pharmacological effects. But the immunosuppressive effect of CBN on DCs and the potential mechanism needed to be explored.

AIM OF THE STUDY

The study was aimed to clarify the immunosuppressive effect of CBN on maturation, migration, allogenic T cell stimulation and phagocytosis capacity of TNF-α induced DCs.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

Bone marrow-derived DCs were obtained and cultured from C57BL/6 mice in accordance with protocol. The phenotypic study (CD11c, CD40, CD80, CD86 and MHC Ⅱ) were measured by flow cytometry. FITC-dextran were uptaked by DCs and the change of endocytosis activity were mediated by acquired mannose receptor. Transwell chambers were used to detect the migration ability of DCs. Mixed leukocyte reaction (MLR) assay was used to detect the allostimulatory ability of CBN on TNF-α stimulated DCs. The secretion of cytokines and chemokines was measured by ELISA Kit. TLRs gene and MAPKs/NF-κB protein expression were checked by qRT-PCR and Western blot.

RESULTS

CBN inhibited the maturation of TNF-α-induced DCs while maintaining phagocytosis capabilities. Additionally, CBN inhibited the migration of TNF-α stimulated DCs, which related to reduce the production of chemokines (MCP-1, MIP-1α). Notably, CBN could suppress the proliferation of CD4⁺T cells by inhibiting DCs maturation, and decrease the proinflammatory cytokines IL-6 production. Furthermore, CBN inhibited mRNA expression of TLR2, TLR7 and TLR9 in TNF-α-activated DCs. Meanwhile, the phosphorylation of p38, JNK1/2 and NF-κB protein were significantly inhibited in CBN treated DCs.

CONCLUSIONS

These findings provided novel insights into the pharmacological activity of CBN. They also indicated that inhibition DCs maturation owning to the immunosuppressive effect of CBN. CBN was expected as a potential immunosuppressant and TLRs/MAPKs/NF-κB pathway may be an important mechanism for CBN's immunosuppressive activity.

Safety of biologic treatments in solid organ transplant recipients: A systematic review

BACKGROUND

The development of biological treatments has transformed the management of a broad spectrum of autoimmune/inflammatory diseases. However, little is known about their use in solid-organ transplant recipients. This study aimed to evaluate complications occurring with biologic treatments in solid-organ transplant recipients.

METHODS

A systematic review of the literature was performed in the Medline, Embase and Cochrane databases, up to 01/10/2020, to identify published case reports or series reporting the use of biologic treatments in solid organ transplant recipients with chronic inflammatory diseases. We collected data on patient characteristics and reported complications.

RESULTS

In total, 57 articles were included, totalling 187 patients (141 liver, 42 kidney, 3 heart, and 1 liver-kidney transplant recipients). Inflammatory bowel diseases represented the most common indication for biologic treatment initiation (80.7%), followed by rheumatic diseases (7.5%), hereditary periodic fever syndromes (5.9%) and psoriasis (4.8%). Anti-TNFα were mainly used (77.5%; mainly monoclonal antibodies (70%) compared to soluble receptor etanercept (7.5%)), followed by the anti-α4β7 integrin, vedolizumab (27.3%) and the anti-IL-1R, anakinra (6.9%). Median treatment duration was 12 months. Infections occurred in 54 patients (28.9%) through 88 recorded events. No therapeutic or demographic factors were associated with occurrence of infection. Sixteen patients (8.6%) developed malignancies, and acute graft rejections occurred in 5 patients (2.7%). Among the 187 patients, 9 deaths were reported (4.8%).

CONCLUSIONS

This review assembles the largest number of published reports regarding the use of biological treatments in solid organ transplant recipients, providing data about their safety. Further comparative studies are needed to assess the safety of biological treatments in transplanted patients.

Prevalence of Musculoskeletal Manifestations in Adult Kidney Transplant's Recipients: A Systematic Review

Background and Objectives: The musculoskeletal (MSK) manifestations in the kidney transplant recipient (KTxR) could lead to decreased quality of life and increased morbidity and mortality. However, the prevalence of these MSK manifestations is still not well-recognized. This review aimed to investigate the prevalence and outcomes of MSK manifestations in KTxR in the last two decades. Materials and Methods: Research was performed in EBSCO, EMBASE, CINAHL, PubMed/MEDLINE, Cochrane, Google Scholar, PsycINFO, Scopus, Science Direct, and Web of Science electronic databases were searched during the years 2000–2020. Results: The PRISMA flow diagram revealed the search procedure and that 502 articles were retrieved from the initial search and a total of 26 articles were included for the final report in this review. Twelve studies reported bone loss, seven studies reported a bone pain syndrome (BPS) or cyclosporine-induced pain syndrome (CIPS), and seven studies reported hyperuricemia (HU) and gout. The prevalence of MSK manifestations in this review reported as follow: BPS/CIPS ranged from 0.82% to 20.7%, while bone loss ranged from 14% to 88%, and the prevalence of gout reported in three studies as 7.6%, 8.0%, and 22.37%, while HU ranged from 38% to 44.2%. Conclusions: The post-transplantation period is associated with profound MSK abnormalities of mineral metabolism and bone loss mainly caused by corticosteroid therapy, which confer an increased fracture risk. Cyclosporine (CyA) and tacrolimus were responsible for CIPS, while HU or gout was attributable to CyA. Late diagnosis or treatment of post-transplant bone disease is associated with lower quality of life among recipients