Schedule At-A-Glance

June 25, 2024 – The Tip of the Spear: Innate Cells as the First Responders in Immunity – presented by Nicole Valenzuela, PhD, UCLA Immunogenetics Center, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Los Angeles, CA

Participants will learn the basic concepts of innate immunity. The speaker will review the different compartments of the innate immune system as well as the importance of each compartment in transplantation.

July 9, 2024 – The Basics of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Transplantation – presented by Dorry Segev, MD, PhD, FAST, Department of Surgery,  NYU Langone Health, New York, NY

 Participants will gain a basic understanding of what AI really means.  They will learn about the various tools used in AI and how they may be applied in transplantation.

July 23, 2024 – The Clinical Impact of DSA in Transplant Recipients Pre- and Post-Transplant – presented by Carrie Schinstock, MD,  Division of Nephrology and Hypertension, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN

Participants learn about the clinical aspects of rejection in organ transplant as well as the clinical impact of donor  specific antibody (DSA) in kidney, heart, and lung transplant. Factors that should be considered when implementing post- transplant DSA monitoring program.

July 30, 2024 – Epitope (Eplet) Analyses for Virtual Crossmatch Risk Assessment – presented by Terry Harville MD, PhD, D(ABMLI), F(ACHI), Immunogenetics and Transplantation Laboratory, University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Little Rock, AR 

Participants will hear a review of the characteristics of antibody epitopes and eplets. They will also learn how an understanding of the similarities and differences between various HLA antigens can aid in identifying compatible donor recipient pairs.  They will also learn about new interfaceable software tools available that facilitate efficient epitope analysis and virtual crossmatching.

August 6, 2024 – Clinical Outcomes and DSA Kinetics After Imlifidase Desensitization – presented by Massimo Mangiola, PhD, F(ACHI), Transplant Institute, NYU Langone, New York, NY

The IgG-degrading enzyme, Imlifidase, is undergoing clinical evaluation for the prevention of kidney transplant rejection in highly sensitized patients who are transplanted across known high-level donor specific antibody (DSA). Participants will hear about initial five-year follow up findings in patients who participated in early clinical trials.       

August 20, 2024 – Many Roads Leading to the Same Place: Different Approaches to HLA Antibody Testing – presented by John Lunz PhD, F(ACHI), LifeLink Foundation Transplantation Immunology Laboratory, Tampa, FL

Participants will hear about why it is difficult to standardize HLA antibody testing workflows. Although the common goal is always to transplant patients safely, different transplant programs have different requirements or unique testing strategies, and different transplant candidates often have distinct needs. While from the laboratory’s standpoint we need to be flexible and accommodating, standardized work flows and policies must be established for each transplant program.  Participants will learn how a formal testing agreement between the transplant program and the HLA laboratory is used for this purpose.

September 17, 2024 – From Inter Laboratory FCXM variability to virtual crossmatch: How can proficiency testing help your laboratory? – presented by Reut Hod Dvorai, PhD, F(ACHI), SUNY Upstate Medical University, Syracuse, NY

The flow cytometric crossmatch (FCXM) assay is utilized by HLA laboratories to assess donor-recipient compatibility and how its results correlate with transplant outcomes; therefore, consistent inter-laboratory FCXM results are critical for successful and safe organ transplantation. Proficiency Testing (PT) surveys utilize laboratory test results to assess concordance across multiple laboratories and provide educational content. Participants will learn about Interlaboratory FCXM variability, the virtual crossmatch (VXM) educational challenge, and how to utilize proficiency testing results to improve or fine-tune their laboratory’s performance.

September 24, 2024 – The Added Value of Antibody Testing Using Solid-Phase Assays from Multiple Vendors – presented by Carly Amato-Menker, PhD, and Cory Crawford, MLS, CHS (ACHI), Histocompatibility and Immunogenetics   Laboratory, Virginia Commonwealth University Medical Center, Richmond, VA

 Participants will learn how comparison of HLA antibody results from different vendors can be helpful for understanding complex or confusing antibody profiles. The lecture will also include an overview of the software provided by each of the two primary vendors and will discuss the strengths and weakness of each vendor’s assays. 

October 1, 2024 – Introduction to Bioinformatics Concepts for Clinical Laboratory Management – presented by Nicholas Brown, PhD, F(ACHI), Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA

Bioinformatics is an interdisciplinary field of science that develops methods and software tools for understanding large amounts of complex biological data. Participants will learn how bioinformatic tools can be used to manage clinical HLA lab data to improve productivity, safety, and transparency as well as to free up human HLA experts to contemplate difficult HLA concepts.

October 8, 2024 – The Impact of the Liver Allograft on DSA-Mediated Injury to Simultaneously Transplanted Organs – presented by Timucin Taner, MD, PhD, Department of Surgery, Mayo Clinic, Rochester, MN

Participants will learn about the mechanisms of antibody-mediated graft injury along with the current evidence for antibody-mediated rejection in liver transplant.  They will also hear about the mechanisms of a liver allograft’s relative resistance to antibody-mediated injury, its impact on host alloimmune response, and the mechanisms underlying the protective impact of the liver transplant.

November 5, 2024 – Adaptive Immunity: Defining Specificity and Pathogenicity – presented by David Pinelli, PhD F(ACHI), Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL

Participants will learn the about basic concepts of the adaptive immune system and its role in transplantation.

November 19, 2024 – Back to the Basics Again: HLA Antibody Analysis – presented by Sandra Rosen-Bronson, PhD, F(ACHI), MedStar Georgetown University Hospital Histocompatibility Laboratory, Washington, DC

Participants will learn basic guidelines for antibody analysis. They will learn how a good understanding of concepts such  as cross-reactive groups (CREG), shared epitopes, and HLA class I and class II associations can guide accurate antibody analysis.  Through case study examples, they will learn a stepwise approach to antibody analysis using standard guidelines and tools.

November 26, 2024 – Making the Impossible Possible: First-in-Human Clinical Grade Kidney Xenotransplant – presented by Jayme Locke, MPH, MD, FACS, Department of Surgery, University of Alabama, Birmingham, AL

Pig kidney xenotransplantation is increasingly regarded as a realistic solution to the current shortage of human organ donors for patients with end-stage organ failure.  Participants will hear about the basic and clinical research that have facilitated significant progress toward making xenotransplant in humans a reality.  

January 7, 2025 – Allele and Haplotype Frequencies 2024 – presented by Loren Gragert, PhD, Tulane University School of Medicine, New Orleans, LA

Participants will hear about recent updates to HLA allele frequency data as well as improvements to the NMDP’s HaploStat tool.

 January 14, 2025 – Practical Considerations for Analytical and Clinical Validation for Donor-Derived Cell-Free DNA Assays – presented by Olga Timofeeva, PhD, F(ACHI), UCLA Immunogenetics Center, Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Los Angeles, CA

Donor-derived cell-free DNA (dd-cfDNA) represents a non-invasive method for early detection of rejection. This test represents a significant advance in precision transplant medicine. As many laboratories are considering adopting the dd-cfDNA assays, it is important to evaluate both pre-analytical and analytical variables that may affect dd-cfDNA assay performance. This lecture will focus on optimal blood sampling and handling protocols, cfDNA extraction and quality assessment, long-term plasma and cfDNA storage as well as the analytical and clinical validation performance specifications. 

January 21, 2025 – DSA Monitoring: One Size Does Not Fit All – presented by Luis Hidalgo, PhD, F(ACHI), HLA Laboratory, University of Wisconsin, Madison, WI

Participants will learn about the impact on transplant outcome of two different types of donor specific antibody (DSA), pre-existing and de novo DSA.  They will learn the basics of how and when HLA antibodies are generated as well as  guidelines  for how and when to monitor for DSA.

February 4, 2025 – Impact of Induction on Acute Rejection in Kidney Transplant Recipients with High and Low Risk Class II Eplet Mismatches – presented by Jenny Tran, PhD, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada

It is currently unknown whether eplet mismatches could be used to inform the choice of induction therapy prior to kidney transplantation.  Participants will hear about a study aimed at evaluating the effect of HLA-DR and DQ eplet mismatches and induction treatment on the risk of acute rejection.

February 11, 2025 – Flow Cytometric Crossmatch Bootcamp: Part 1 – presented by Robert Liwski, MD, PhD, Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada

In Part 1 of this series, participants will learn basic principles of flow cytometry and flow cytometric crossmatching. They will gain an understanding of flow crossmatch methods and analysis.   

February 18, 2025 – Flow Cytometric Crossmatch Bootcamp: Part 2 – presented by Robert Liwski, MD, PhD, Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre, Dalhousie University, Halifax, NS, Canada

In Part 2 of this series, participants will more about the principles of flow cytometry and flow cytometric crossmatching and will gain a more in-depth understanding of flow crossmatch methods as well as hear tips for troubleshooting and  optimization.

February 25, 2025 – Clinical Implementation of Nanopore Sequencing for HLA Typing – presented by Deborah Ferriola, BS, CHT, and Jamie Duke, PhD, Children's Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, PA

Nanopore sequencing is being considered by many labs as a feasible method for rapid high-resolution HLA typing of deceased donors for solid organ transplants.  Participants will learn about the unique validation and quality assurance challenges encountered when implementing nanopore sequencing for patient testing in a clinical laboratory.