Torque Teno virus quantification for the prediction of kidney transplant rejection

Common diseases such as hypertension or diabetes may lead to kidney damage and sometimes even irreversible loss of kidney function. Transplantation of a donor kidney can replace renal function. After transplantation the foreign kidney is under constant attack by the body`s own immune system. Most of the time acute damage can be prevented by drugs that inhibit the immune response, but chronic rejection processes may still going on and lead to functional loss of the transplanted kidney. There is no sufficient diagnostic test to predict these rejection processes precisely. Scientific data indicate that the amount of Torque Teno virus (TTV) associates with the activity of the immune system and thus indirectly indicate the risk of rejection. The virus causes no disease, is detectable in about 90% of the patients and can be quantified by a small blood sample from the vein. The submitted project should clarify whether screening of TTV level in the blood of patients after kidney transplantation can predict organ rejection. The results of this study might lead to the establishment of TTV as a novel diagnostic tool for organ rejection after kidney transplantation and thus provide a valuable basis for early rejection therapy or adaptation of immunosuppressive drugs to prevent organ loss.

Torque Teno Virus to measure the Strength of the Immune System We have been working on a project to help kidney transplant recipients. When someone's kidneys stop working, they can get a new kidney through a special surgery called a kidney transplant. But there's a problem: Our immune system, which helps protect us from germs, sees the new kidney as something strange and tries to attack it. That's not good because the new kidney won't work properly if it's being attacked by our own immune system. To prevent this from happening, people who have had a kidney transplant need to take special medicines called immunosuppressive drugs. These drugs help to calm down the immune system and make it less likely to attack the new kidney. However, if the patients take too much of these drugs, their immune system becomes weak, and they become more prone to getting infections. So, what we want to do is create a new tool, like a special device, called an "immunometer." This tool will help us measure how active the immune system is in kidney transplant patients. We believe that a recently discovered virus called the TT virus can help us with this. The interesting thing about this virus is that it can be found naturally in the blood of both healthy people and kidney transplant recipients, but it doesn't cause any disease. During our project, we made some important discoveries. We found that when the immune system is strong, the amount of the TT virus in the blood is low. This suggests that there is a higher risk of the new kidney being rejected. On the other hand, when the immune system is weak, the amount of the TT virus in the blood is high, indicating a higher risk of getting infections. Based on what we learned, we have defined specific levels of the TT virus that can help doctors identify the risk of rejection and infection in transplant patients. These levels allow doctors to determine the best range of TT virus in the blood and provide personalized care to each patient. This approach could lead to more successful organ transplants and better long-term outcomes for patients. We also found some early evidence suggesting a connection between low TT virus levels and not taking the immunosuppressive drugs as prescribed. This finding could help doctors identify patients who may be having trouble taking their medications correctly. By monitoring the levels of the TT virus, doctors can step in early and make sure that patients receive the right amount of medication for a successful transplant.