Association of plasma pentosidine concentrations with renal function in kidney graft recipients

Advanced glycation end-products accumulate in the plasma of uremic patients. We aimed to assess the changes of free (P(free)) and total (P(tot)) plasma pentosidine concentrations in kidney graft recipients, create a model describing their profile and analyze associations with clinical parameters.

We measured P(free) and P(tot) in the plasma of 12 non-diabetic patients before and after kidney transplantation by HPLC.

P (tot) concentrations were significantly decreasing after transplantation. The changes were well described by the exponential model assuming an asymptotic fall until the steady-state concentration is attained. P(tot) before and after transplantation displayed a strong negative correlation with mean daily diuresis (Rs = -0.64, p < 0.05 before; Rs = -0.94, p < 0.01 after 20 d). The rate of fall of the P(tot) was positively correlated with the mean daily volume of urine passed in the second week after operation (Rs = +0.58, p < 0.05).

The rate of fall of the P(tot) after transplantation displays a strong correlation with diuresis, and the P(tot) before transplantation is a potential prognostic factor for diuresis after the operation. Further prospective studies are necessary to demonstrate whether an effort to reduce carbonyl stress and pentosidine concentration before transplantation improves renal outcome.