Chronic kidney disease stage 5 (CKD5) dialysis patients who stay long term in uremic environment often exhibit several, poorly defined, immune impairments. In this study, we assessed peripheral virus-specific effector/memory cells and subpopulations of T, B and DC cells using ELISPOT and FACS methods in 74 low-risk kidney transplant candidates without anti-HLA antibodies, prior to transplantation in pre-emptive (never experienced dialysis) and dialysis cohorts.
There was difference in circulating marginal zone B cells (MZB) (IgD(high)CD27(high)) between dialysis patients and those receiving kidney grafts pre-emptively (P = .002). Patients treated on dialysis > 12 months had also 4.2-fold greater risk of increased absolute numbers of MZB (95%CI:1.6-11.2; P = .004).
There were no other differences in B-, T- and DC-cell subsets. Numbers of effector/memory T cells reactive to major opportunistic virus-specific antigens (CMV, BKV and EBV) were not affected by dialysis.
Nonsensitised dialysis-treated patients displayed significantly more circulating MZB compared to those CKD5 patients that had never undergone dialysis therapy.