Changes in cytokine concentrations in graft renal vein during reperfusion in patients with and without delayed graft function.

Introduction: The impairment of organ function derived from ischemia-reperfusion injury is still an important problem in solid organ transplantation. Cell alterations induced by ischemia prime the tissue for the subsequent damage that occurs during the reperfusion phase. Despite recent advances in immunosuppressive therapy, delayed graft function (DGF) remains an important problem after kidney transplantation. Different studies have related various clinical factors to DGF, such as donor age, recipient age, cold ischemia time, initial immunosuppressive regimens. The aim of present study was to examine the changes in cytokine concentrations in graft renal vein during the reperfusion in relation to the development of delayed graft function.
Material and Methods: The study included 17 recipients of cadaveric renal grafts (10 males, 7 females, mean age 49 +/- 7 years, cold ischemia time 25 +/- 3 h)--8 with DGF and 9 without DGF. Levels of IL-lbeta, IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-8, IL-10, IFN-gamma, TNF-beta and TNF-alpha in renal graft vein plasma during 5 first min. of reperfusion were quantified by flow-cytometry.
Results: The increased concentrations ofIL-6, TNF-alpha and IL-1beta were observed during reperfusion. However there were no statistically significant differences between patients with and without DGF.