mtDNA Analysis: A Valuable Tool to Establish Relationships in Live Related Organ Transplants

In India, 90% kidneys for transplantation are obtained from living donor while only 10% come from deceased donors. Since the rate of living organ donors is high, it therefore leads to the problem of organ trafficking.To minimize the chances of organ trafficking, the Transplantation of Human Organ Act (THOA) 2014 was enacted in India that makes it mandatory to prove the relationship between patient and donor by DNA testing. The present study was undertaken to evaluate the degree of matching between maternally related patients and donors, performed using mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA).

After taking an informed consent, a total of 84 subjects were recruited in the study, 42 kidney transplant recipients and 42 their corresponding donors. An attempt was made to establish and confirm the claimed relationship betweenrecipient and donor using mtDNA analysis.

Out of the total 42 cases, mtDNA analysis supported the claimed relationship in 33 (78.57%) cases, whereas in 9 (21.42%) cases claimed relationship could not be supported.

mtDNA can be used as valuable tool to support the claimed relationships of maternal lineage. It is important that more and more organ transplant physicians, surgeons and committees are made aware of this diagnostic modality.