OBJECTIVETo investigate the effects of donor and recipient anti-major histocompatibility complex class I-related chain A (MICA) antibodies on early renal graft function in renal transplant recipients.

METHODSUsing Luminex200 liquid chip technology, we detected anti-MICA antibodies in 26 deceased donors paired with 43 recipients. We divided the 43 pairs into 4 groups according to different donor and recipient anti-MICA antibody positivity statuses and compared the incidence of acute rejection (AR), serum creatinine at 1 week after transplantation, and renal function recovery time between the groups to assess the effect of donor and recipient anti-MICA antibodies on early graft function.

RESULTSFive of the 26 donors were positive for anti-MICA antibodies (19.2%), with the most common antibody being anti-MICA*019 (40%); 11 of the 43 recipients were positive for anti-MICA antibodies (25.6%), among which anti-MICA*018 was most frequently found (14.6%). AR did not occur in the only anti-MICA antibody-positive recipient receiving an anti-MICA antibody-positive donor graft; AR occurred in 2 (33.3%) of the 6 anti-MICA antibody-negative recipients receiving anti-MICA antibody-positive donor graft, in 4 (40%) out of the 10 anti-MICA antibody-positive recipients receiving anti-MICA antibody-negative donor graft, and in 10 (38.4%) of the 26 anti-MICA antibody-negative recipients receiving anti-MICA antibodies-negative donor graft. The incidences of AR were not significantly different between the groups (P>0.05), nor were serum creatinine levels or renal function recovery time at one week after surgery(P>0.05).

CONCLUSIONDonor or recipient anti-MICA antibody positivity does not seem to significantly affect the incidence of AR or renal function recovery early after transplantation to justify the necessity of monitoring donor anti-MICA antibodies. But still, large-sample studies are needed to further investigate the potential impact of donor and recipient anti-MICA antibodies on the outcomes of renal transplantation.