Prospective cohort study of Torque Teno Virus (TTV) viral load kinetics and the association with graft rejection in renal transplant patients

Introduction: Graft survival is mainly determined by rejections and infectious complications in transplant recipients. Torque Teno Virus (TTV), a nonpathogenic and ubiquitous single-stranded DNA virus, has been proposed as a biomarker of the immune status in transplant patients. This study aimed to...

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Detalles Bibliográficos
Autores: Reyes, Noelia Soledad, Laham, G., Boccia, N., García, G., Jara, R., Hermida, E., Ricarte, Joaquina Carmen, Diaz, C., Soler Pujol, G., Poletta, Fernando Adrián, Echavarría, Marcela Silvia
Tipo de recurso: artículo
Estado:Versión publicada
Fecha de publicación:2023
País:Argentina
Institución:Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas
Repositorio:CONICET Digital (CONICET)
Idioma:inglés
OAI Identifier:oai:ri.conicet.gov.ar:11336/228798
Acceso en línea:http://hdl.handle.net/11336/228798
Access Level:acceso abierto
Palabra clave:GRAFT REJECTION
RENAL TRANSPLANTATION
TORQUE TENO VIRUS
VIRAL LOAD KINETICS
https://purl.org/becyt/ford/3.3
https://purl.org/becyt/ford/3
https://purl.org/becyt/ford/1.6
https://purl.org/becyt/ford/1
Descripción
Sumario:Introduction: Graft survival is mainly determined by rejections and infectious complications in transplant recipients. Torque Teno Virus (TTV), a nonpathogenic and ubiquitous single-stranded DNA virus, has been proposed as a biomarker of the immune status in transplant patients. This study aimed to determine the correlation between a Home-Brew TTV PCR and R-GENE®PCR; the TTV viral load kinetics in renal transplant recipients and the association with graft rejection. Materials and methods: Prospective cohort study on 107 adult renal transplant recipients. TTV viral load was determined in 746 plasma samples collected before and after renal transplantation by a Home-Brew PCR and a commercial PCR (R-GENE®PCR). Associations of TTV viral load with graft rejections were analyzed. Results: Agreement of both PCR assays was 93.2% and Pearson correlation coefficient was r: 0.902 (95%CI: 0.8881–0.9149, p < 0.0001). TTV viral load kinetics showed an initial gradual increase reaching a peak at 3 months. This highest value was followed by a slight decrease, reaching a plateau significantly higher than the initial baseline at 6 months (p < 0.0001). Between (181–270) days post-transplantation, TTV median viral load in patients with graft rejection was significantly lower, 3.59 Log10 copies/mL (by Home-Brew PCR) and 3.10 Log10 copies/mL (by R-GENE®PCR) compared to patients without graft rejection (6.14 and 5.96 Log10 copies/mL, respectively). Conclusions: Significantly lower TTV viral load was observed in patients with renal rejection occurring at a median of 243 days post-transplantation. Given the dynamic behavior of TTV viral load post-transplantation, cut-off values for risk stratification to predict rejection might be determined in relation to the post-transplant period.