Purpose@#Klotho is an antiaging factor mainly produced by renal tubular
cells. Klotho is reportedly decreased in an
animal model of
acute kidney injury and
patients with
chronic kidney disease. However, information on Klotho expression after
kidney transplantation is limited. We analyzed the correlation between
donor Klotho expression and clinical outcomes of
kidney transplantation. @*
Methods@#Sixty
patients who underwent deceased
donor kidney transplantation between March 2015 and October 2017 were enrolled.
Serum and
tissue Klotho expression levels were measured by
enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay and
immunohistochemistry, respectively.
Graft function was assessed by estimated
glomerular filtration rate (eGFR). @*Results@#
Patients were divided into 2 groups according to
donor Klotho expression in renal
tissues. A greater improvement in eGFR was observed at 1 week after
transplantation in
patients receiving
kidneys with higher Klotho expression (47.5 ± 21.9 mL/min/1.73 m2 vs. 63.9 ± 28.2 mL/min/1.73 m2, P = 0.030).
Patients were also classified into 2 groups according to
donor serum Klotho level. There was a tendency for a higher eGFR at 12 months after
transplantation in
patients receiving
kidneys from
donors with a higher Klotho level (51.0 ± 18.0 mL/min/1.73 m2 vs. 61.2 ± 16.5 mL/min/1.73 m2, P = 0.059). When subgrouped into
patients with or without
biopsy-proven acute rejection, 12-month eGFR remained higher in
patients receiving
kidneys from
donors with higher
serum Klotho. @*Conclusion@#Our data demonstrated that
donor tissue expression of Klotho correlated with early recovery of eGFR after
kidney transplantation.
Donor serum Klotho level tended to be associated with posttransplant 12-month eGFR.
Donor Klotho expression might be a new predictor for deceased
donor kidney transplantation outcome.