High Pretransplant BAFF Levels and B-cell Subset Polarized towards a Memory Phenotype as Predictive Biomarkers for Antibody-Mediated Rejection

Antibody-mediated rejection (AbMR) is one of the leading causes of graft loss in kidney transplantation and B cells play an important role in the development of it. A B-cell activating factor (BAFF) is a cytokine involved in B cell ontogeny. Here, we analyzed whether B cell maturation and the effect of B cell soluble factors, such as BAFF could be involved in AbMR. Serum BAFF levels and B and T cell subpopulations were analyzed 109 kidney transplant patients before transplantation and at 6 and 12 months after kidney transplantation. Pretransplant serum BAFF levels as well as memory B cell subpopulations were significantly higher in those patients who suffered clinical AbMR during the first 12 months after kidney transplantation. Similar results were observed in the prospective analysis of patients with subclinical antibody-mediated rejection detected in the surveillance biopsy performed at 12 months after kidney transplantation. A multivariate analysis confirmed the independent role of BAFF in the development of AbMR, irrespective of other classical variables. Pretransplant serum BAFF levels could be an important non-invasive biomarker for the prediction of the development of AbMR and posttransplant increased serum BAFF levels contribute to AbMR.