This prospective research collects leftover kidney biopsy tissue slides and matching routine clinical data from patients who received kidney transplants and underwent standard kidney puncture biopsy at Zhejiang University School of Medicine First Affiliated Hospital starting November 2025. A total of around 1,000 patient samples will be included, covering transplant rejection (including TCMR and ABMR subtypes, acute and chronic rejection), polyomavirus infection and recurrent original kidney disease after transplantation.
All study materials come from residual biopsy specimens generated during regular clinical examinations, with no extra invasive operations, additional medical costs or physical trauma for participants. We will scan pathological slides into digital images and combine them with patients' medical records, lab test results, medication history and follow-up information. After full anonymization and standardized labeling by senior renal pathologists following the Banff standard, we will build an artificial intelligence (AI) multi-task model.
This AI system will serve three core clinical functions: accurately distinguish different types of transplant kidney lesions, quantitatively measure tissue damage caused by rejection, and predict the risk of recurrent rejection after surgery. We will optimize and verify the model's diagnostic accuracy, stability and reliability through dataset segmentation, cross validation and algorithm adjustment.
For patients, this study brings no extra physical or economic burden. If suspicious pathological changes are found during data analysis, relevant clues will be fed back to attending doctors to support individual treatment management. For clinical providers, the finished AI tool can reduce pathologists' reading workload, lower missed diagnosis and misdiagnosis caused by individual experience differences, especially improve detection of subclinical and borderline rejection. It helps clinicians evaluate injury severity and forecast recurrence risk, so as to formulate personalized immunosuppression regimens, reduce rejection relapse and prolong graft survival.
Strict privacy protection measures are implemented throughout the whole research process: all personal identifiable information will be completely removed, and encrypted classified data management is adopted to prevent information leakage. Every participant signs a written informed consent and retains the right to withdraw from the study at any time without affecting their regular medical care. All research procedures have passed ethical review supervision, and all collected data and specimens will be properly stored or destroyed in accordance with standardized medical management rules after the study ends.
The research aims to fill the gap of prospective multi-dimensional AI auxiliary diagnosis research in kidney transplantation, promote standardized, intelligent and precise post-transplant pathological evaluation, and provide new technical support to improve long-term survival outcomes of kidney transplant recipients.
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Exclusion Criteria:
Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China
AI for Allograft Diseases Diagnosis and Prognosis After Kidney Transplantation
A Mixed Cohort, Multicentre Exploratory Study of Non-invasive Quantitative Assessment of Renal Graft Function With Non-contrast Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging
Deep Phenotyping of the Renal Allograft to Prognosticate Clinical Outcomes
To Explore the Application Value of Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Noninvasive Quantitative Evaluation of Graft Function and Systemic Metabolism After Renal Transplantation
Development and Validation of a Comprehensive Classification Automation System for Kidney Allograft Biopsies
Proteogenomic Monitoring and Assessment of Kidney Transplant Recipients
Investigating the Impact of AI on Shared Decision Making in Post-kidney Transplant Care
Development and Validation of a Multidimensional Score to Predict Long-term Kidney Transplant Outcomes