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G Proud

Publications and source records attributed to G Proud.

At least 55 records · Page 3Linked to original sources

Flow cytometric crossmatching and outcome one year after renal transplantation.

Previous studies have shown that flow cytometric crossmatch assays can identify an at risk population in renal transplantation. We used the assay for recipient selection for 1 year. Recipients with donor T cell directed IgG were excluded from transplantation and those with B cell directed IgG were treated with increased immunosuppression. The transplants performed over this period (n = 126) were compared with an earlier series (n = 118) in which flow cytometric crossmatch results did not influence patient management. The results were evaluated for mortality and graft outcome at 3 months and 1 year. In addition, postoperative complications and duration of hospital stay were also assessed.

Antilymphocyte Serum↗

Improved graft outcome and reduced complications due to flow cytometric crossmatching and DR matching in renal transplantation.

Several previous studies, including our own, have indicated that flow cytometric assays can identify an at-risk population of kidney transplant recipients. We used the assay for recipient selection for a period of twelve months. Recipients with donor T cell-directed IgG were excluded from transplantation and those with B cell-directed IgG were treated with increased immunosuppression. The transplants performed over this period (n = 126) were compared with an earlier series (n = 118) where, although the flow cytometric crossmatches were performed, the results did not influence patient management. In the series where the flow cytometric crossmatch was used in management, a lower failure rate was found at three months (P = 0.037 chi square), primary non-function was reduced (P less than 0.0001, Mann-Whitney), rejection episodes were reduced (P less than 0.0001, Mann-Whitney) and the hospital stay was shorter (P less than 0.0001, Student's t). The risk factors of ischemic times, panel reactivity, exposure to previous grafts and A/B locus matching were identical between the two groups. However DR matching was found to be higher in the series with the improved results (P less than 0.0001, Mann-Whitney). In view of the significant improvement in graft success and low complication rate, we intend to continue with the policy of recipient selection by flow cytometric crossmatching and DR matching.

Adult↗

Renal allograft rejection: induction and function of adhesion molecules on cultured epithelial cells.

The interaction of graft-infiltrating immune cells with donor parenchymal cells is an important early event in allograft rejection. This binding is stabilized by interaction of antigen-independent 'adhesion' molecules expressed on the two cell types. As the level of expression of these molecules can be altered during inflammation, a series of experiments was performed to examine the effects of the inflammatory cytokines interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma) and tumour necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-alpha) on adhesion molecules expressed by cultured human renal tubular epithelial cells. These cells constitutively expressed ICAM-1 and LFA-3. Incubation with IFN-gamma increased expression of ICAM-1 but had no significant effect on expression of LFA-3 (P greater than 0.05). Incubation with TNF-alpha increased expression of both ICAM-1 and LFA-3; IFN-gamma synergized with TNF-alpha to further augment expression of these molecules. Peripheral blood lymphocytes (PBL) showed an enhanced binding to allogeneic renal epithelial cell monolayers which had been pretreated with IFN-gamma or TNF-alpha. MoAbs specific for ICAM-1 or its ligand LFA-1 inhibited adhesion of PBL to either IFN-gamma- or TNF-alpha-pretreated renal cells. By contrast, antibodies specific for LFA-3 or its ligand CD2 only significantly blocked PBL adhesion to renal cells which had been pretreated with TNF-alpha. Combination of antibodies specific for multiple components of the adhesion systems produced greater inhibition of adhesion than was produced by any single MoAb. These results suggest that the inflammatory cytokines IFN-gamma and TNF-alpha up-regulate expression of functional ICAM-1 and LFA-3 molecules which can augment the binding of potentially graft-damaging lymphoid cells to renal tubular epithelial cells.

Antigens, CD↗

Donor-recipient age difference--an independent risk factor in cyclosporin-treated renal transplant recipients.

Whilst HLA matching is routine in renal transplantation the possible benefits of matching donor to recipient age have not been previously explored. The simultaneous effect on graft survival of donor and recipient age was therefore investigated for 274 consecutive first cadaver transplant recipients treated by cyclosporin immunosuppression in two centres. The overall graft survival was 77%, and was not significantly different between the two centres. Individually there was no significant effect of donor or recipient age but taken together, the difference in age significantly affected graft survival (P less than 0.01) regardless of the mode of failure. The 1-year graft survival for all failures was 66.2% when the donor was 5 or more years older. 84.5% when the donor was 5 or more years younger and 71.7% when the donor was within 5 years of the recipient's age. Multivariate analysis, taking into account other variables (HLA matching, dialysis time and type, donor/recipient sex, local/imported kidneys, sensitivity, operation time, total ischaemic time, pre-operative transfusions) indicated that age difference was the single most important variable (P less than 0.01). The only other important covariate risk factor in improving graft survival was HLA-DR matching (P less than 0.05). Donor-recipient age difference is a potentially important recipient selection criterion in cyclosporin-treated renal transplant patients.

Adolescent↗

Renal epithelium: reversal of cytotoxic damage by addition of anti-thymocyte globulin.

A novel in vitro assay of renal epithelium tight junction function was used to assess the efficacy with which rabbit anti-thymocyte globulin (ATG) blocks epithelium damage mediated by lymphokine-activated killer (LAK) cells. It was found that LAK cells lysed renal epithelial cells poorly in standard chromium-release assays but that they caused a rapid, and almost total, reduction in trans-epithelium monolayer resistance, indicating tight junction failure and, hence, loss of tissue function. LAK cell-mediated cytolysis of the sensitive K562 cell line was completely blocked in the presence of ATG at a concentration of 200 micrograms/ml. Addition of ATG at this concentration to damaged renal cell monolayers in the presence of LAK cells allowed the trans-monolayer resistance to recover rapidly to levels approaching the values recorded before initial addition of LAK cells. On this basis it seems likely that the rapid restoration of renal function frequently observed after appropriate "rescue" therapy during episodes of acute rejection may reflect subtle changes in tissue function rather than recovery from widespread graft cell cytolysis.

Animals↗

Transfusion-induced immunosuppression and red cell clearance.

While blood transfusion is increasingly implicated in the aetiology of tumour recurrence, the mechanism of this effect is unclear. Cancer-bearing patients are known to have factors in their sera which depress the function of normal lymphocytes. It is possible that blood transfusion accentuates this natural suppression. An animal model was therefore developed to study the effect of blood transfusion on humoral immunosuppressive activity and its possible relationship to red cell clearance. WAG rats given a transfusion of chromium-labelled allogeneic but blood-group compatible DA rat blood, developed significantly increased (P < 0.001) levels of lymphocyte suppressive factors in plasma (maximum at 7 days) which coincided with accelerated red cell clearance (t1/2 = 7 days). A transfusion of syngeneic WAG blood caused only a small transient increase in plasma suppression and red cells were cleared at a normal rate (t1/2 = 13 days) consistent with previous studies. However, when syngeneic WAG red cells were lysed and the red cell membranes infused there was a rapid increase in plasma suppression (P < 0.001), similar to but less prolonged than that achieved with allogeneic blood. The immunosuppressive effect of blood transfusion may result from accelerated clearance of allogeneic or damaged syngeneic red blood cells.

Animals↗

Renal allograft rejection: investigation of alloantigen presentation by cultured human renal epithelial cells.

Defined lines of primary human renal epithelial cells were established and their expression of class II major histocompatibility (MHC) antigens was up-regulated by culture with interferon-gamma (IFN-gamma). The ability of these cells to stimulate the proliferation of allogeneic peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMC) was compared with that of endothelial cells and splenic mononuclear cells. It was found that both endothelial and splenic cells stimulated lympho-proliferation but that cultured renal epithelial cells were non-stimulatory. The failure of proliferation by allogeneic lymphocytes in culture with epithelial cells was not overcome by treatment with interleukin-1 (IL-1) or indomethacin. However, addition of IL-2 to mixed cultures of allogeneic PBMC and renal epithelial cells stimulated lympho-proliferation and allowed the generation of lymphoid cell lines which mediated non-specific lysis of renal epithelial cell lines. Stimulation of PBMC by mixed lymphocyte culture yielded an allospecific T-cell line which was added either to renal epithelial cells from the same donor as the stimulator cells used in the priming reaction or from a third-party donor; lympho-proliferation was observed in the specific secondary reaction but not in the non-specific reaction. These findings indicate that class II MHC antigen-expressing epithelial cells within a renal allograft may not initially stimulate the proliferation of resting allospecific recipient lymphocytes. However, within a rejecting graft it is likely that high local concentrations of IL-2 are present and that many of the infiltrating allospecific lymphocytes will be primed by previous contact with donor antigen-presenting cells, such as vascular endothelial cells or dendritic cells. Therefore, expression of class II MHC antigens by epithelial cells within the microenvironment of a renal allograft may render such cells immunogenic and able to play a direct role in the lymphocyte-mediated intragraft rejection process.

Antigen-Presenting Cells↗

Renal allograft rejection. Functional impairment of kidney epithelial cell monolayers mediated by lymphokine-activated killer cells and by antibody.

A continuous line of human kidney epithelial cells was cultured to confluency on porous membranes, and the formation of intercellular tight junctions was monitored by measuring increases in the trans-monolayer electrical resistance. Typical monolayers developed functioning tight junctions within 4 days of culture and showed an increase in resistance of 1840 +/- 440 ohms (mean +/- SD; n = 5) at this time. Conventional 51Cr release assays showed that suspended kidney cells were lysed by specific antibody and complement but were relatively resistant to lysis mediated by lymphokine-activated killer cells. However, when antibody and complement or LAK cells were added to functioning kidney cell monolayers the electrical resistance of the monolayers was rapidly reduced in both cases. In the absence of trans-monolayer resistance the ion gradients essential for renal tubular function will not be supported. These results indicate that the ability of a cytotoxic effector cell to liberate 51Cr from suspended kidney cells may not be a sensitive assay for the ability of these effector cells to impair the function of structured kidney cell monolayers. It is possible that significant kidney dysfunction may occur during renal allograft rejection by failure of trans-epithelium resistance in the absence of widespread epithelial cell lysis.

Animals↗

Renal replacement treatment for diabetic patients in Newcastle upon Tyne and the Northern region, 1964-88.

OBJECTIVES: To review the experience of renal replacement treatment in diabetic patients treated in Newcastle upon Tyne and the Northern region from 1964 to 1988, and to compare the morbidity and mortality of diabetic patients treated with dialysis or transplantation with those of matched controls of non-diabetic patients. DESIGN: Retrospective study of clinical case notes. SETTING: Renal units of the Northern region, particularly that in Newcastle upon Tyne. PATIENTS: All 65 diabetic patients treated by renal replacement treatment in Newcastle upon Tyne from 1964 to 1987; 42 diabetic patients were matched with 42 non-diabetic patients according to age, sex, year of starting treatment, and type of treatment (dialysis or transplantation). MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Sex, age, renal biopsy findings, blood pressure, history of diabetic treatment, and plasma creatinine concentration at the start of renal replacement treatment. History of renal replacement treatments, suitability for transplantation, history of transplantation, cumulative survival, and cause of death during follow up. Survival of technique, cumulative survival of the first peritoneal catheter and history of peritonitis in patients treated with continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis; source of graft, histocompatibility antigens, duration of associated stay in hospital, and graft survival in patients receiving renal or pancreatic transplant. RESULTS: 1259 Patients with chronic renal failure were accepted for renal replacement treatment in Newcastle upon Tyne, of whom 65 (5%) had diabetes. The first was accepted in 1974, and between 1974 and 1980 another 15 were treated (mean age 42 years; 4% of new patients). From 1981 to 1987, 49 diabetic patients (mean age 44; 9% of new patients) were treated. Fifty patients (77%) had insulin dependent diabetes and the remaining 15 (23%) non-insulin dependent diabetes. On average, the patients were aged 25 (range 5-57) when diabetes was first diagnosed and 44 (range 24-70) at the start of renal replacement treatment. The mean age at the start of treatment was 40 for patients with non-insulin dependent diabetes and 58 for patients with non-insulin dependent diabetes. Transplantation was performed in 33 of the diabetic patients, whose mean age was lower than that of those who did not receive a transplant (41 v 48 respectively, p less than 0.05). Comparison between the 42 diabetic patients and matched controls showed that the overall survival at five years was 46% and 77% respectively. The three year survival of the diabetic patients who did not receive a transplant was poor (41% v 79% respectively). Of patients transplanted, survival at five years was 73% in the diabetic patients and 90% in the controls. However, there was no significant difference in the five year graft survival (64% v 46% respectively). CONCLUSIONS: Diabetes adversely affects morbidity and mortality in patients having renal replacement treatment, but renal transplantation seems to be the best option for treating diabetic patients with end stage renal failure.

Adolescent↗

Monitoring of transplant patients' lymphocytes: knowledge of the varying specificities of anti-lymphocyte antibodies allows the interpretation of anomalous results.

In many transplant centers, the T lymphocytes of transplant patients are routinely monitored, both to predict and diagnose the cellular events that result from transplantation and to evaluate the effectiveness of immunosuppressive therapy. During the course of this monitoring, we have observed anomalous results: the number of T cells said to be present varies greatly depending on the surface marker used for the assay. It is shown, in this study, that these "anomalous" results can be predicted from a knowledge of the spectrum of specificity of the anti-lymphocyte antibody therapy being administered. Because polyclonal antibodies have varied and unstated specificities, it is difficult to interpret results obtained from monitoring T-cell numbers or subset ratios without some knowledge of the specificities of the drugs being used.

Antibodies↗

Percutaneous transluminal angioplasty of the innominate, subclavian, and axillary arteries.

Percutaneous balloon angioplasty offers an alternative to surgery for the alleviation of symptoms in upper limb arterial disease. This report documents 28 per-femoral dilatation procedures in 27 patients for 33 subclavian, two innominate, and two axillary lesions. Thirty-four stenoses and three occlusions were treated, with multiple dilatations in five patients. Indications for treatment were: arm ischaemia (15 patients); neurological (steal syndrome) symptoms (8); and combined ischaemia plus steal (5). Angioplasty was technically successful in 27 procedures with symptomatic relief in 25 cases up to a mean follow-up of 24 months (median 20 months, range 2-90 months). One patient had successful repeat angioplasty for recurrent ischaemic symptoms after 30 months. Angioplasty improved pulse deficits in all but two patients and reduced arm blood pressure differential to less than 30 mmHg in all but three patients. There were three complications: a femoral artery occlusion and a groin haematoma required surgical intervention and another patient suffered an extension of a contralateral stroke. Percutaneous balloon angioplasty has proved safe and effective. We recommend angioplasty as the first line treatment for ischaemic or neurological symptoms in upper limb vascular disease.

Angioplasty, Balloon↗

Renal allograft rejection. Possible involvement of antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity.

We have demonstrated that serum from appropriately sensitized patients can contain IgG antibodies that bind to cultured renal epithelial cells. The presence of such antibodies on the surface of renal cells enables otherwise nonlytic PBMC to lyse these renal cells by an antibody-dependent cell-mediated cytotoxicity (ADCC) mechanism. Experiments involving cell-sorting and specific complement-mediated lysis showed that the ADCC effector cells were of the CD3 -ve, C16 +ve phenotype characteristic of NK cells. In this report it is argued that an ADCC mechanism may be of importance in mediating chronic renal cell damage in the absence of acute allograft rejection.

Antibody-Dependent Cell Cytotoxicity↗

Blood transfusion and surgery: the effect on growth of a syngeneic sarcoma.

The effects of blood transfusion, blood components, and surgical trauma on the growth of an experimental sarcoma have been examined. Recipient animals were inbred adult female WAB rats, which received allogeneic transfusions from inbred adult female PVG rats, syngeneic blood from inbred colony-mates, or saline infusions. Small volume transfusions (1-4 ml) of whole blood had no effect on tumour growth, but growth of the MC7 sarcoma was significantly enhanced following allogeneic transfusions of 5 ml whole blood, or when 4 ml was combined with sham laparotomy. Maximal enhancement of tumour growth occurred when 4 ml transfusions of allogeneic washed cells were given, but allogeneic plasma was also able, to a lesser degree, to enhance tumour growth. These data confirm that blood transfusion may enhance growth of the MC7 sarcoma, that the effect may be dose dependent, and synergistic with the immunosuppression of surgery. Many components of an allogeneic transfusion may be responsible for this effect.

Animals↗

Late perfusion. A simple remedy for renal allograft primary nonfunction.

Primary nonfunction in renal allografts makes the diagnosis of allograft dysfunction more difficult and may effect long-term graft survival. The prevention of primary nonfunction by a reperfusion technique has been assessed in a prospective analysis of 145 consecutive renal transplants performed in a single center. All kidneys were retrieved using an in situ perfusion method, and all but 13 recipients received a standardized immunosuppressive protocol with cyclosporine. The first 106 transplants were performed without the benefit of any additional perfusion, and the incidence of primary nonfunction was 57.5% in these patients. The last 39 kidneys received additional perfusion with kidney perfusion fluid immediately prior to implantation (late perfusion). In the latter group, the incidence of primary nonfunction was 30.8% (P = 0.007). Using logistic regression analysis, only three factors were found to be associated with primary nonfunction: immunosuppression with cyclosporine (P = 0.01), a second warm ischemia time of greater than 35 min (P = 0.002), and late perfusion (P = 0.003). In this study, the use of late perfusion alone has reduced the incidence of primary nonfunction by almost one half. The technique is simple, safe, inexpensive, and effective. Its routine use is now advocated in all renal transplants.

Cyclosporins↗