De novo anti-HLA antibody responses after renal transplantation: detection and clinical impact

Numerous retrospective and prospective studies have been conducted to determine the prevalence and significance on long-term graft survival of de novo post-transplant donor-specific antibodies (DSA), directed against both HLA and non-HLA molecules. Moreover, it has been postulated that the development of anti-HLA antibodies may precede the clinical manifestation of chronic rejection, therefore being considered a predictive marker. In this context, the detection of C4d deposition in the failing kidney in patients presenting de novo DSA supports the hypothesis that antibody production and complement deposition could be involved in the pathogenesis of graft failure. Due to the development of more sensitive meth-ods to detect alloantibodies, the number of transplanted patients which show the appearance of DSA at different times following transplantation has increased. Nevertheless, this increased sensitivity has allowed the identification of circulating donor-specific anti-HLA antibodies in many patients with otherwise good graft function. Such findings are worthy of discussion, as it has yet to be determined whether these circulating antibodies can only be considered an early marker of humoral rejection or whether they could play a protective role. The possible relevance of the post-transplant appearance of non-DSA should also be mentioned. This review will focus primarily on de novo anti-donor HLA antibody responses in kidney transplant patients and will only briefly deal with anti-non HLA and non-DSA that will be discussed elsewhere in this issue.