Complement-Bound Exosomes and Kidney Transplant Immunity
Official title: Complement-Bound Exosomes in Human Kidney Transplant Immunity
Funded at Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai · NIH-11442411 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project studies how kidney transplant injury and rejection happen after surgery and whether blocking certain immune pathways during organ preservation could improve transplant outcomes.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (New York, United States) |
| Project start | September 1, 2026 |
| Project end | August 31, 2031 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $820,496 |
| NIH project number | 1R01AI203173-01 |
| Project ID | NIH-11442411 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Patients receiving kidney transplants or donor kidneys deemed discarded for research could benefit from future advances arising from this work.
✕Less likely to help
Direct patient benefit is not guaranteed during the research phase and outcomes depend on future clinical translation.
What this research studies
Researchers will use discarded human kidneys and machine perfusion to study injury-related immune changes in real time. They will examine how complement activation changes the kidney’s molecules and exosome cargo, and how these signals influence immune cells that attack the transplant. By testing specific complement inhibitors during organ perfusion, they aim to link injury pathways to alloimmune responses and identify ways to modulate the tissue before implantation. The work combines advanced sequencing, protein analysis, and functional tests to uncover targets that animal models may miss and to develop biomarkers of injury and immune activation.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the approach could lead to new strategies to reduce rejection and improve survival of transplanted kidneys.
How similar studies have gone: Prior studies show that complement pathways influence transplant injury, but translating this to human therapies remains challenging; this study aims to bridge that gap with human tissue.
Where this research is happening
-
Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
New York, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Cravedi, Paolo — Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
- Study coordinator: Cravedi, Paolo
Related research
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-
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-
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-
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-
Characterization of a LILRB3 SNP cluster and its link to kidney transplant outcomes
A study in kidney transplant recipients looks at genetic factors that may be tied to higher risk of graft failure.
-
Optimizing a prehabilitation program for kidney transplant candidates on dialysis
A program to improve physical function and readiness for kidney transplant in people on dialysis is being developed and tested to help candidates stay healthier while they wait.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.