Immunology articles within Nature Reviews Nephrology

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  • Review Article |

    Inflammation is a known driver of diabetes and obesity-associated kidney disease. This Review describes the role of endogenous lipid mediators — specialized pro-resolving lipid mediators and branched fatty acid esters of hydroxy fatty acids — in the resolution of inflammation and explores how insights into their function could identify new targets for therapeutic intervention.

    • Eoin Brennan
    • , Phillip Kantharidis
    •  & Catherine Godson

  • Review Article |

    In transplantation, liquid biopsies that can detect donor-derived cell-free DNA (dd-cfDNA) might improve monitoring of organ rejection without invasive biopsies, and might enable effective management of anti-rejection drug therapies. Here, the authors discuss dd-cfDNA quantification methods, the clinical validity of these approaches, their limitations and economic implications.

    • Michael Oellerich
    • , Karen Sherwood
    •  & Philip D. Walson

  • Review Article |

    Immune cells have important roles in many kidney diseases and their phenotypes are intricately connected to their metabolic profiles. Here, the authors explore the metabolic programs of different kidney immune cells and their phenotypes, and the potential of targeting immunometabolism in the kidney.

    • Paulo José Basso
    • , Vinicius Andrade-Oliveira
    •  & Niels Olsen Saraiva Câmara

  • Comment |

    Patients with kidney diseases should be prioritized for COVID-19 vaccination and the available data suggest that replication-defective viral-vectored vaccines and mRNA vaccines are safe to use. As vaccine responses are likely to be lower in patients with kidney diseases than in the general population, highly potent vaccines should be preferred.

    • Martin Windpessl
    • , Annette Bruchfeld
    •  & Andreas Kronbichler

  • Review Article |

    Calcium oxalate kidney stones are often found attached to Randall’s plaques in the kidney papilla. Here, the authors examine the mechanisms underlying the formation of Randall’s plaques, including the role of mineralization modulators, as well as inflammation and immune cells.

    • Saeed R. Khan
    • , Benjamin K. Canales
    •  & Paul R. Dominguez-Gutierrez

  • Review Article |

    This Review describes our current understanding of the pathogenic mechanisms involved in severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) infection and the progression of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), focusing on the immunological hyper-response and the induction of widespread endothelial damage, complement-associated blood clotting and systemic microangiopathy, as well as the effects of these processes on the kidney. The authors also discuss therapeutic interventions that currently hold most promise.

    • Luca Perico
    • , Ariela Benigni
    •  & Giuseppe Remuzzi

  • Consensus Statement
    | Open Access

    COVID-19-associated AKI (COVID-19 AKI) is associated with high mortality and is an independent risk factor for all-cause in-hospital death in patients with COVID-19. This Consensus Statement from the Acute Disease Quality Initiative provides recommendations for the diagnosis, prevention and management of COVID-19 AKI and for areas of future research, with the aim of improving understanding of the underlying processes and outcomes for patients with COVID-19 AKI.

    • Mitra K. Nadim
    • , Lui G. Forni
    •  & John A. Kellum

  • Review Article |

    Acute kidney injury is a common complication of trauma. Here, the authors examine how, in addition to direct trauma to the kidneys, the pathophysiological responses to traumatic injuries in distant organs, including immune responses, can result in kidney dysfunction.

    • David A. C. Messerer
    • , Rebecca Halbgebauer
    •  & Markus Huber-Lang

  • News & Views |

    The generation of local immune responses in organs requires a coordinated effort, not just from immune cells, but also from ‘structural’ cells such as epithelial cells, endothelial cells and fibroblasts. New insights gained from profiling these cells across organs in the mouse emphasizes the important contribution of this structural cell network to organ immunity.

    • Zewen Kelvin Tuong
    •  & Menna R. Clatworthy

  • Comment |

    The COVID-19 pandemic has placed a tremendous strain on sustaining the clinical research enterprise and will also likely affect key study outcomes; these effects must be considered during data analysis and interpretation. Nevertheless, the responses to the pandemic have also introduced innovations that will advance the conduct of clinical research.

    • Katherine R. Tuttle

  • Review Article |

    Here, the authors describe the effector cell populations and immunosuppressive networks that are present in renal cell carcinoma (RCC) tumours. They also discuss the use of immune checkpoint inhibitors and novel approaches such as adoptive cell therapy in patients with RCC.

    • C. Marcela Díaz-Montero
    • , Brian I. Rini
    •  & James H. Finke

  • News & Views |

    Long-term immunosuppression in transplant recipients is associated with important adverse effects including increased risk of infection and malignancy. New data from the ONE Study suggests that use of cell-based medicinal products containing regulatory immune cells is a potentially useful therapeutic strategy to enable minimization of immunosuppression in these patients.

    • James M. Mathew
    •  & Joseph R. Leventhal

  • Review Article |

    Purinergic signalling in the kidney maintains homeostasis and mediates injury-induced inflammation. The extracellular conversion of ATP into adenosine is critical for modulating these processes. Here, the authors discuss the pathological conditions associated with extracellular ATP metabolism and novel strategies for their treatment.

    • Karen M. Dwyer
    • , Bellamkonda K. Kishore
    •  & Simon C. Robson

  • Review Article |

    In this Review, the authors discuss general dendritic cell biology, including their development, trafficking and functional differentiation. The unique features of kidney dendritic cells are also examined, as well as their role in various acute and chronic types of kidney disease.

    • Christian Kurts
    • , Florent Ginhoux
    •  & Ulf Panzer

  • Comment |

    The prevalence of direct kidney involvement in novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) is low, but such involvement is a marker of multiple organ dysfunction and severe disease. Here, we explore potential pathways of kidney damage and discuss the rationale for extracorporeal support with various blood purification strategies in patients who are critically ill with COVID-19.

    • Claudio Ronco
    •  & Thiago Reis

  • Comment |

    The current COVID-19 pandemic is associated with unprecedented morbidity and mortality. Early reports suggested an association between disease severity and hypertension but did not account for sources of confounding. However, the responsible virus — SARS-CoV-2 — gains entry to host cells via angiotensin-converting enzyme 2 (ACE2), highlighting the need to understand the relationship between the virus and the renin–angiotensin system (RAS) and how this might be affected by RAS inhibitors.

    • Andrew M. South
    • , Laurie Tomlinson
    •  & Matthew A. Sparks

  • Review Article |

    In this Review, the authors discuss current understanding of the expression and dysregulation of factors that regulate angiogenesis and lymphangiogenesis in the kidney, as well as potential therapeutic strategies to target these factors during various kidney diseases.

    • Katsuyuki Tanabe
    • , Jun Wada
    •  & Yasufumi Sato

  • News & Views |

    Paradoxically, elevated BMI is a recognized positive prognostic factor in renal cell carcinoma (RCC). A recent investigation of the transcriptomic signatures of RCC tumours and peritumoural tissues suggests potential biological mechanisms underlying this effect. However, the clinical utility of BMI in the context of RCC remains uncertain.

    • Chun Loo Gan
    •  & Daniel Y. C. Heng

  • Review Article |

    Applying single-cell RNA sequencing (scRNA-seq) to human tissues can reveal the phenotypic diversity of resident and infiltrating cells at high resolution. In this Review, the authors examine important design considerations for applying this technology to kidney cells and discuss current findings from scRNA-seq studies of lupus nephritis.

    • Deepak A. Rao
    • , Arnon Arazi
    •  & Betty Diamond

  • Review Article |

    In this Review, Stewart and colleagues describe how single-cell technologies, in particular single-cell RNA sequencing, can be used to map the complex immune landscape within organs, and how such technologies might provide insights into the role of the immune system in kidney health and disease pathogenesis.

    • Benjamin J. Stewart
    • , John R. Ferdinand
    •  & Menna R. Clatworthy

  • News & Views |

    In recent years, the molecular view of clear cell renal cell carcinoma (ccRCC) has been based primarily on gene transcription data with limited information on protein features. A new study led by the Clinical Proteomic Tumor Analysis Consortium now offers a comprehensive view of the ccRCC proteome.

    • Chad J. Creighton

  • Review Article |

    Fibroblast growth factor 23 (FGF23) is crucial to phosphate and calcium homeostasis. In this Review, the authors discuss how levels of biologically active FGF23 are controlled by balanced FGF23 transcription and protein cleavage, and how serum iron levels, inflammation and erythropoietin affect that balance.

    • Daniel Edmonston
    •  & Myles Wolf

  • Review Article |

    Therapeutic modulation of hypoxia-inducible factors, which transduce adaptive transcriptional responses to hypoxia, is an emerging theme in kidney disease. This Review summarizes the hypoxia signalling mechanisms underpinning these novel treatments and highlights key remaining questions relevant to their clinical use.

    • Johannes Schödel
    •  & Peter J. Ratcliffe

  • Review Article |

    Immunological ageing has profound effects on the immune system and its ability to protect the host against infection, cancer and autoimmunity. In this Review, the authors discuss how the processes of immunosenescence and inflammageing drive these age-related changes, and their effects on the ageing kidney.

    • Yuki Sato
    •  & Motoko Yanagita

  • Review Article |

    Sodium has a crucial role in osmoregulation and fluid balance. In this Review, the authors discuss how sodium is also an important functional modulator of innate and adaptive immune cells and how it might be linked to chronic inflammatory conditions.

    • Nicola Wilck
    • , András Balogh
    •  & Dominik N. Müller

  • Review Article |

    Various cell types release extracellular DNA traps that protect the host against microbial infections. In this Review, the authors discuss how DNA traps not only participate in pathogen clearance but can also promote vascular disease and autoimmunity.

    • Christoph Daniel
    • , Moritz Leppkes
    •  & Martin Herrmann

  • News & Views |

    In a collaborative effort, researchers have identified unusual protein deposits of exostosin 1 and exostosin 2 in patients with PLA2R and THSD7A-negative membranous nephropathy, many of whom had systemic lupus erythematosus, lupus nephritis or other forms of autoimmunity. Although serum exostosin antibodies were not detected, the findings suggest that these proteins could define a distinct subtype of membranous nephropathy.

    • Hans-Joachim Anders

  • Review Article |

    Antimicrobial resistance is an emergent global problem and patients with chronic kidney disease have some of the highest rates of colonization and infection with antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARB). This Review focuses on the epidemiology, prevention and treatment of infections with ARB.

    • Tina Z. Wang
    • , Rosy Priya L. Kodiyanplakkal
    •  & David P. Calfee

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