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Updated: Aug 20, 2026
Application of Laser Microdissection to Uncover Regional Transcriptomics in Human Kidney Tissue
Published on: June 9, 2020
Quantitative gene expression analysis of fractalkine using laser microdissection in biopsies from kidney allografts
M C Pietrzyk1, B Banas, K Wolf
1Klinik und Poliklinik für Innere Medizin II, University of Regensburg, 94042 Regensburg, Germany. miriam.pietrzyk@klinik.uni-regensburg.de
Abstract:
Percutaneous biopsy of the kidney remains the gold standard to establish a diagnosis in renal diseases. Only semiquantitative assessments of gene expression on biopsies have been possible so far. We studied gene expression of the chemokine fractalkine (FKN) in 12 biopsies from laser microdissected kidney allografts that showed histologic signs of acute rejection and 10 controls. As quantified by real-time PCR, the relative tubular FKN expression increased from 1.0 [0.81 to 2.95] (median [range]) in controls to 12.44 [0.90 to 191.0] in acute rejection (P < .01); glomerular FKN expression from 1.3 [0.07 to 27.44] to 12.22 [1.32 to 50.23] (P < .05); and vascular expression, from 0.72 [0.37 to 5.11] to 7.07 [1.19 to 73.49] (P < .01). Furthermore, there was a trend toward higher glomerular FKN expression among patients with more severe rejection. Our results suggest a role of FKN in acute renal allograft rejection.
