Investigation into the use of peripheral blood transitional B cells as Biomarkers for renal graft outcomes

Through research funded by Kidney Research Yorkshire, Dr Baker has found that some specific cells of the immune system (transitional B cells) are found in the blood of people with kidney transplants in different amounts, and the number of cells seems to associate with how long the transplant lasts.

It is hoped that this will ultimately lead to personalised treatment – ie different immunosuppression medications given to different patients according to the number of these cells found in their blood.

This could both improve the length of time the transplants last, and avoid giving too much drug to people who don’t need it or too little to those that do. Also, understanding this basic biology will improve our knowledge of how the body responds to transplants and could even lead to novel treatments in the future.

Dr Richard Baker – Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust