Safer liver transplants from HIV-positive donors
Official title: Expanding HOPE Liver Transplantation: Understanding Opportunistic Infection and Cancer Risk
Funded at Johns Hopkins University · NIH-11258257 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project looks at whether liver transplants from HIV-positive donors are safe for people living with HIV and how to lower infections and virus-related cancers.
Quick facts
| Grant type | U01 cooperative agreement |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Johns Hopkins University NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Baltimore, United States) |
| Project start | August 1, 2018 |
| Project end | August 31, 2030 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $1,683,861 |
| NIH project number | 2U01AI138897-06A1 |
| Project ID | NIH-11258257 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
People living with HIV who need a liver transplant and are willing to consider an organ from an HIV-positive donor are the ideal candidates.
✕Less likely to help
People without HIV, those who are not transplant candidates, or patients not treated at participating transplant centers would not benefit from participation.
What this research studies
If you are living with HIV and need a liver transplant, this project follows people who receive livers from HIV-positive donors to understand why some have more infections or virus-linked cancers. Researchers will collect medical records, blood and tissue samples and perform tests like CD4 counts, viral assays, and advanced immune profiling (including CITE-sequencing) over months and years. They will compare outcomes to people who received livers from donors without HIV and look for viral reactivation, immune changes, and other risk factors. The aim is to identify better donor selection, monitoring, and preventive treatments to make these transplants safer.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: Could make HIV-positive-donor liver transplants safer by reducing opportunistic infections and virus-associated cancers for people living with HIV.
How similar studies have gone: Earlier HOPE program work showed HIV-to-HIV organ transplants are feasible but found higher early infections and some increased mortality, so this project builds on those findings to improve safety.
Where this research is happening
-
Johns Hopkins University
Baltimore, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Durand, Christine Marie — Johns Hopkins University
- Study coordinator: Durand, Christine Marie
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
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Targeting a specific CD38 form to protect livers from injury after transplant
A new approach tests a selective drug to protect donor livers from injury during transplant, potentially increasing usable organs and improving transplant outcomes.
-
Regulatory dendritic cell therapy to reduce immunosuppressive drugs after liver transplant
A new approach using donor-derived regulatory dendritic cells is being tested to help adults who receive a liver transplant live without relying on traditional immunosuppressive drugs.
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HOPE liver transplant: reducing infections and cancer risk for HIV-positive recipients
This grant aims to better understand why HIV-positive liver transplant recipients face higher infection and cancer risks and to improve safety and outcomes for these patients.
-
Early liver transplant decisions for severe alcohol-related liver disease
A large study follows adults with severe alcohol-related liver disease to understand how to best select and manage patients for early liver transplantation.
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Early Liver Transplant for Severe Alcoholic Hepatitis
A hospital-based program is studying whether offering an early liver transplant to patients with severe alcoholic hepatitis can save lives when standard medical treatment fails.
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Early liver transplant for severe alcoholic hepatitis (SAH) to save lives
A Johns Hopkins program is testing whether giving an early liver transplant to patients with severe alcoholic hepatitis who can’t be helped by standard treatments can save lives and reduce relapse risk.
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.