Helping the immune system accept a donated kidney in patients without prior sensitization
Official title: Determinants of donor-specific T cell tolerance in kidney transplantation in non-sensitized recipients
Funded at Duke University · NIH-11528916 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project will try giving specially treated donor B cells alongside immune-sparing medicines to teach the immune systems of kidney transplant patients without prior antibodies to accept the new kidney.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Duke University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Durham, United States) |
| Project start | August 15, 2017 |
| Project end | April 30, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $1,096,972 |
| NIH project number | 5U19AI131471-10 |
| Project ID | NIH-11528916 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
This work is aimed at kidney transplant candidates or recipients who are not sensitized to donor antigens (no pre-formed donor-specific antibodies).
✕Less likely to help
Patients who are highly sensitized with existing donor-specific antibodies, have incompatible donors, or have uncontrolled active infections may not benefit from this approach.
What this research studies
Our team will use a drug regimen that first reduces certain immune cells and then keeps new immune cells in a calm, controllable state. In that setting, we will give donor B cells that were treated outside the body to try to teach the immune system to ignore the transplanted kidney. We will study effects in a primate model and examine individual immune cells to see whether donor-specific cells are deleted, made inactive, or regulated. We will also look at how common viral infections like CMV affect whether this tolerance can form and stay stable.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this approach could lower the need for long-term immune-suppressing drugs and reduce rejection after kidney transplant.
How similar studies have gone: Earlier work showed the drug regimen reshapes the immune cell population favorably, but using chemically treated donor B cells to induce lasting, donor-specific tolerance is a novel approach with promising preclinical support but not yet proven in people.
Where this research is happening
-
Duke University
Durham, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Luo, Xunrong — Duke University
- Study coordinator: Luo, Xunrong
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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.