Biomarker-Development Proteomics in Kidney Transplantation: An Updated Review

Kidney transplantation (KT) is the optimal therapeutic strategy for patients with end-stage renal disease. The key to post-transplantation management is careful surveillance of allograft function. Kidney injury may occur from several different causes that require different patient management approaches. However, routine clinical monitoring has several limitations and detects alterations only at a later stage of graft damage. Accurate new noninvasive biomarker molecules are clearly needed for continuous monitoring after KT in the hope that early diagnosis of allograft dysfunction will lead to an improvement in the clinical outcome. The advent of omics sciences, and in particular of proteomic technologies, has revolutionized medical research. Proteomic technologies allow us to achieve the identification, quantification, and functional characterization of proteins/peptides in biological samples such as urine or blood through supervised or targeted analysis. Many studies have investigated proteomic techniques as potential molecular markers discriminating among or predicting allograft outcomes. Proteomic studies in KT have explored the whole transplant process: donor, organ procurement, preservation, and posttransplant surgery. The current article reviews the most recent findings on proteomic studies in the setting of renal transplantation in order to better understand the effective potential of this new diagnostic approach.

Automated summary

Kidney transplantation is the best treatment option for end-stage renal disease patients and requires careful monitoring of graft function. Routine clinical monitoring has limitations and can only detect graft damage at a later stage. Noninvasive biomarker molecules are needed for continuous monitoring after kidney transplantation to enable early diagnosis of graft dysfunction and improve clinical outcomes. Proteomic technologies have revolutionized medical research and have been studied as potential molecular markers for predicting graft outcomes in kidney transplantation. This article reviews the latest findings on proteomic studies in renal transplantation to better understand the potential of this new diagnostic approach.