Plasma atrial natriuretic factor and graft function in renal transplant recipients

In order to determine the relationships between allograft function and the recipient's plasma concentrations of atrial natriuretic factor (ANF), plasma ANF was measured by radioimmunoassay for 14 days after cadaveric renal transplantation in 9 patients aged 19-64 years. All received immunosuppression with prednisolone, azathioprine, and cyclosporine. No patient was in heart failure. During the study period, six grafts functioned, and three were nonfunctioning--two due to rejection and one to acute tubular necrosis. Plasma ANF concentration at the time of transplantation was 48 +/- 16 pmol/L (mean +/- SEM) range 15-145 pmol/L. In the six patients with functioning grafts, ANF declined in parallel with the fall in serum creatinine (658 +/- 35 to 210 +/- 34 mumol/L). In the three with nonfunctioning grafts, serum creatinine and plasma ANF concentration both increased. There was overall a significant linear relation between serum creatinine and plasma ANF (r = 0.527, P less than 0.001). The changes in plasma ANF after renal transplantation bore no relationship to changes in body weight or blood pressure. However, plasma ANF concentration was related to allograft fractional sodium excretion (r = 0.687, p less than 0.001). We conclude that elevated plasma ANF concentrations in end-stage renal disease are restored to normal by successful renal transplantation, implying that renal function is a determinant of plasma ANF concentration. Circulating plasma ANF may also have a direct effect on allograft sodium excretion.