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World J Transplant. Sep 24, 2014; 4(3): 168-175
Published online Sep 24, 2014. doi: 10.5500/wjt.v4.i3.168
Published online Sep 24, 2014. doi: 10.5500/wjt.v4.i3.168
Complement cascade and kidney transplantation: The rediscovery of an ancient enemy
Alberto Mella, Maria Messina, Antonio Lavacca, Luigi Biancone, Renal Transplantation Unit “A. Vercellone”, Division of Nephrology Dialysis and Transplantation, Department of Medical Sciences, Città della Salute e della Scienza Hospital and University of Torino, 88-10126 Turin, Italy
Author contributions: Mella A, Messina M, Lavacca A and Biancone L had contributed to this paper in conception and design, acquisition, analysis and interpretation of data, and drafting the article and revising it critically for important intellectual content; all authors approved this version to be published.
Correspondence to: Luigi Biancone, MD, PhD, Renal Transplantation Unit “A. Vercellone”, Division of Nephrology Dialysis and Transplantation, Department of Medical Sciences, Città della Salute e della Scienza Hospital and University of Torino, Corso Bramante, 88-10126 Turin, Italy. luigi.biancone@unito.it
Telephone: +39-011-6335594 Fax: +39-011-6334990
Received: May 16, 2014
Revised: June 28, 2014
Accepted: September 6, 2014
Published online: September 24, 2014
Processing time: 161 Days and 16.4 Hours
Revised: June 28, 2014
Accepted: September 6, 2014
Published online: September 24, 2014
Processing time: 161 Days and 16.4 Hours
Core Tip
Core tip: Complement cascade is involved in different types of renal disease, from glomerulonephritides to pre-eclampsia, and the availability of new drugs, able to inhibit different steps of the cascade, re-defined this ancient pathway, and its blockage both in native and transplanted kidneys, as a new challenging frontier in renal disease treatment. In this review we evaluate the importance of complement cascade in renal transplantation diseases, focusing on available treatments, and we propose a speculative identification of areas where complement inhibition may be a promising strategy.