Members of the PROOF Centre team are in San Diego this week to share research highlights from the Biomarkers in Transplantation Canada-wide trail at ISHLT’s 34th Annual Meeting & Scientific Sessions.
Blood test to monitor for the absence of treatable acute cardiac rejection
Acute rejection occurs in 20-30% of heart transplant recipients, and it is currently monitored by invasive and costly endomycardial biopsies. An urgent need exists for non-invasive and accurate, predictive and monitoring methods to improve care and outcomes for organ transplant patients. We worked with collaborators from across Canada to study blood-based gene-expression in heart transplant patients. Our work on the development of transplant rejection biomarkers since 2004 has allowed us to create a proven computational pipeline that can be applied to our other biomarker programs.
To find out more, come to Concurrent Session 08: Measure for Measure: Assessment of Cardiac Allograft and Immune Function on Friday, April 11, 2014 at ISHLT’s 34th Annual Meeting & Scientific Sessions. Dr. Zsuzsanna Hollander will discuss, Blood Test to Monitor for the Absence of Acute Cardiac Rejection: From Discovery to Clinical Implementation.
Dr. Hollander will also be a session moderator at Concurrent Session 48: Novel Approaches to Keep the Heart Going, on Sunday, April, 13, 2014.
Plasma Protein Biosignatures for Detection of Cardiac Allograft Vasculopathy
Cardiac allograft vasculopathy (CAV) develops in 50% of heart transplant recipients beyond the first year after transplant. Coronary angiography with or without intravascular ultrasound is currently the gold standard for the diagnosis of CAV. Given the invasiveness, expense, discomfort, and risk of complications associated with coronary angiography, a minimally invasive alternative that is sensitive and specific is desired. We previously identified an 18-plasma protein biomarker classifier panel that was able to differentiate patients with CAV from those without. Dr. Mustafa Toma will illustrate the emerging value of blood-based proteomic biomarkers with data from replication studies in a Canada-wide trial. His presentation, Plasma Protein Biosignatures for Detection of Cardiac Allograft Vasculopathy, will take place during Concurrent Session 08 on Friday, April 11, 2014.