Proteomic Analysis Reveals Innate Immune Activity In Intestinal Transplant Dysfunction

INTRODUCTION:

Intestinal transplantation (ITx) offers a potential means of survival for patients with intestinal failure who have developed life threatening complications. Approximately 200 ITx procedures are performed worldwide per year, with 2200 such procedures having been performed in total, two thirds of which have been in children. Overall, patient and graft survival rates have improved significantly over the past several years due to innovations in surgical techniques, immunosuppression and post-transplant management. One year patient survival rates approach 80-90% at experienced centers. Nonetheless, acute cellular rejection (ACR) continues to pose major challenges in these patients.

Currently, the gold standard for diagnosing ACR is histological examination of biopsy samples obtained at the time of endoscopy. Limitations include the fact that endoscopy is by definition invasive, costly, associated with risks of bleeding, infection, or perforation, and potentially inaccurate. ACR can present as a patchy process which may be missed by endoscopic surveillance up to 30% of the time. It also presents in a similar fashion to infection, leading to a diagnostic dilemma as to the optimal management of the patient. Such delays and inaccuracies in the diagnosis and management of ITx recipients have the potential to lead to patient and graft loss. New noninvasive techniques to monitor for ACR are clearly needed to continue to drive the field of ITx forward.

Proteomics allows the identification of proteins as possible biomarkers. Protein profiles can be easily detected in body fluids, making these protein combinations potentially innovative biomarkers useful in diagnosis or disease monitoring. Following protein and metabolite levels may prove to be an accurate screening tool for patients suspected of having ACR.

In this study, we use high-throughput proteomic analysis and candidate immunoassay protein detection of ostomy effluents to search in a non-invasive manner for molecular profiles of epithelial stress and innate immunity during ACR.