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Updated: Oct 10, 2025

Cell-Free DNA Integrity Analysis in Urine Samples
Published on: January 5, 2017
Emerging role of cell-free DNA in kidney transplantation
Bhavna Chopra1, Kalathil K Sureshkumar2
1Nephrology and Hypertension, Allegheny General Hospital, Pittsburgh, PA 15212, United States.
Abstract:
Monitoring kidney transplants for rejection conventionally includes serum creatinine, immunosuppressive drug levels, proteinuria, and donor-specific antibody (DSA). Serum creatinine is a late marker of allograft injury, and the predictive ability of DSA regarding risk of rejection is variable. Histological analysis of an allograft biopsy is the standard method for diagnosing rejection but is invasive, inconvenient, and carries risk of complications. There has been a long quest to find a perfect biomarker that noninvasively predicts tissue injury caused by rejection at an early stage, so that diagnosis and treatment could be pursued without delay in order to minimize irreversible damage to the allograft. In this review, we discuss relatively novel research on identifying biomarkers of tissue injury, specifically elaborating on donor-derived cell-free DNA, and its clinical utility.
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