Extended Validation of Donor-derived Cell-free DNA in Kidney Transplant Recipients

Allograft rejection remains a leading cause of kidney transplant failure, and standard-of-care monitoring detects it late.

Recently, combining dd-cfDNA with functional, immunological and clinical parameters has been shown to improve rejection detection under the Banff 2019 framework. However, the Banff 2022 revision formally recognized microvascular inflammation without DSA or C4d (MVI, DSA-negative, C4d-negative) and probable antibody-mediated rejection as distinct rejection phenotypes, raising the question of whether dd-cfDNA can help detecting these phenotypes. Its performance also remains unclear across the broader spectrum of Banff rejection phenotypes and injury patterns, when the complete diagnostic workup is unavailable, in the early post-transplant period, in specific populations, and when measured repeatedly over time.

The investigators therefore aim to evaluate the association between dd-cfDNA and Banff rejection phenotypes and its added diagnostic value to detect them, across the clinical situations in which the biomarker is used.

The study has three objectives:

• To assess the association between dd-cfDNA and Banff 2022 rejection phenotypes and injury patterns, including antibody-mediated, T cell-mediated and mixed rejection, borderline changes, probable antibody-mediated rejection and MVI, DSA-negative, C4d-negative, together with its relationship to the severity of the underlying lesions, with particular attention to microvascular inflammation.
• To assess the diagnostic value of dd-cfDNA, alone and within the integrative dd-cfDNA model, for the detection of biopsy-proven rejection as defined by the Banff 2022 classification, and beyond standard-of-care monitoring.
• To assess whether this performance is maintained across clinical scenarios and populations, including incomplete diagnostic workup, the first month post-transplant, delayed graft function, and specific subpopulations.

Secondarily, the investigators aim to assess whether serial dd-cfDNA improves the detection of rejection, and its prognostic value for death-censored allograft failure.

Inclusion criteria

• Recipients transplanted from a deceased or living donor
• Kidney allograft biopsy concomitantly with dd-cfDNA measurement
• Written informed consent at the time of transplantation for inclusion the center database

Exclusion criteria

• Combined organ transplantation
• Pregnant women
• Grafts from monozygotic twins
• Recipient of a bone marrow transplant