Objective: To investigate the relations between serum soluble HLA class I antigens (sHLA-I) and the period of acute rejection and infection in renal transplant recipients.
Methods: We measured the serum levels of sHLA-I in 36 renal transplant recipients with ELISA dynamically.
Results: The serum sHAL-I levels were higher in uremia patients than in normal controls [(2.94 +/- 0.34) microg/L vs. (0.76 +/- 0.33) microg/L, P < 0.05]. After renal transplantation, the serum sHLA-I levels decreased significantly in stable patients [(0.63 +/- 0.33) microg/L], but increased significantly 3 days before acute rejection and 5 or 7 days after infection.
Conclusions: The serum sHLA-I levels can be used as a parameter for monitoring acute rejection and infection in renal transplantation.