Acute and chronic damage of kidneys and kidney transplants

Research Group Leader

  • Prof. Dr. med. Wilfried Gwinner

  • Dr. med. Robert Greite

 

Research Assistants

  • Dr. med. Julian Doricic

  • Dr. rer. biol. hum. Irina Scheffner

 

Technical Assistants

  • M.Sc. Nele-Sophie Heinz (Data Management)

 

Scientific profile

Our research focuses on various forms of acute and chronic kidney and kidney transplant injury. This includes the investigation of immunological and non-immunological factors that are important for the long-term preservation of renal function, but also for patient survival and quality of life.

Specifically, we explore mechanisms of damage and mechanisms of renal tissue regeneration, which collectively determine the extent to which acute tissue damage can recover or progress to a chronic scarred state with permanent loss of function.

For these investigations, we integrate clinical findings with results of renal tissue examinations and molecular analyses. Selected pathophysiological aspects are also investigated in translational animal models within the framework of collaborations.

Two goals are paramount:

  • the precise determination of the actual condition of the kidneys and
  • the most accurate possible prediction of future long-term development

Both points are important for individual risk assessment and a well-adapted therapy.

Our research involves project partners from the MHH (our Department, Department of Pathology, Institute of Biometry, Institute of Medical Informatics), the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI) in Braunschweig, the Center for Information Services and High Performance Computing (ZIH) in Dresden as well as other, international research partners.

 

Selected publications

  1. Greite R, Wang L, Gohlke L, Schott S, Kreimann K, Doricic J, Leffler A, Tudorache I, Salman J, Natanov R, Ius F, Fegbeutel C, Haverich A, Lichtinghagen R, Chen R, Rong S, Haller H, Vijayan V, Gram M, Scheffner I, Gueler F, Gwinner W, Immenschuh S. Cell-Free Hemoglobin in Acute Kidney Injury after Lung Transplantation and Experimental Renal Ischemia/Reperfusion. Int J Mol Sci. 2022 Oct 31;23(21):13272. doi:10.3390/ijms232113272

  2. Labriffe M, Woillard JB, Gwinner W, Braesen JH, Anglicheau D, Rabant M, Koshy P, Naesens M, Marquet P. Machine learning-supported interpretations of kidney graft elementary lesions in combination with clinical data. Am J Transplant, September 2022, doi: 10.1111/ajt.17192

  3. Gwinner W, Karch A, Braesen JH, Khalifa AA, Metzger J, Naesens M, Van Loon E, Anglicheau D, Marquet P, Budde K, Matz M, Arns W, Fischereder M, Habicht A, Eisenberger U, Muhlfeld A, Busch M, Wiesener M, Scheffner I and Koch A. Noninvasive Diagnosis of Acute Rejection in Renal Transplant Patients Using Mass Spectrometric Analysis of Urine Samples: A Multicenter Diagnostic Phase III Trial. Transplant Direct. 2022;8:e1316. DOI: 10.1097/TXD.0000000000001316

  4. Störmer J, Gwinner W, Derlin K, Immenschuh S, Rong S, Jang MS, Shushakova N, Haller H, Gueler F, Greite R. A Single Oral Dose of Diclofenac Causes Transition of Experimental Subclinical Acute Kidney Injury to Chronic Kidney Disease. Biomedicines. 2022 May 22;10(5):1198. doi: 10.3390/biomedicines10051198

  5. Doricic J, Greite R, Vijayan V, Immenschuh S, Leffler A, Ius F, Haverich A, Gottlieb J, Haller H, Scheffner I and Gwinner W. Kidney injury after lung transplantation: Long-term mortality predicted by post-operative day-7 serum creatinine and few clinical factors. PLoS One. 2022;17:e0265002. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0265002

  6. Patecki M, Scheffner I, Haller H and Gwinner W. Long-term renal graft outcome after parathyroidectomy - a retrospective single centre study. BMC Nephrol. 2020;21:53. DOI: 10.1186/s12882-020-01723-x

  7. Scheffner I, Gietzelt M, Abeling T, Marschollek M and Gwinner W. Patient Survival After Kidney Transplantation: Important Role of Graft-sustaining Factors as Determined by Predictive Modeling Using Random Survival Forest Analysis. Transplantation. 2020;104:1095-1107. DOI: 10.1097/TP.0000000000002922

  8. Greite R, Derlin K, Hensen B, Thorenz A, Rong S, Chen R, Hellms S, Jang MS, Bräsen JH, Meier M, Willenberg I, Immenschuh S, Haller H, Luft FC, Panigrahy D, Hwang SH, Hammock BD, Schebb NH, Gueler F. Early antihypertensive treatment and ischemia-induced acute kidney injury. Am J Physiol Renal Physiol. 2020 Oct 1;319(4):F563-F570. doi: 10.1152/ajprenal.00078.2020

  9. Kettler B, Scheffner I, Brasen JH, Hallensleben M, Richter N, Heiringhoff KH, Lehner F, Klempnauer J and Gwinner W. Kidney graft survival of >25 years: a single center report including associated graft biopsy results. Transpl Int. 2019;32:1277-1285. DOI: 10.1111/tri.13469

  10. Abeling T, Scheffner I, Karch A, Broecker V, Koch A, Haller H, Schwarz A and Gwinner W. Risk factors for death in kidney transplant patients: analysis from a large protocol biopsy registry. Nephrol Dial Transplant. 2019;34:1171-1181. DOI: 10.1093/ndt/gfy131

 

Current third-party funding

European research project (ERACoSysMed) ROCKET: "Reclassification using OmiCs integration in Kidney Transplantation" 2018-2022

BMBF project "Precise diagnosis for prevention of perioperative acute kidney injury as a major clinical complication" 2018-2021

European research project (FP7) BIOMARGIN: "Biomarkers of renal graft injury in kidney transplanted patients" 2013-2018

Various projects with different industrial partners

 

Open positions and PhD projects

Upon request

 

Contact

Gwinner.wilfried(at)mh-hannover.de

Greite.robert(at)mh-hannover.de