Class II Eplet Mismatch Modulates Tacrolimus Trough Levels Required to Prevent Donor-Specific Antibody Development

Despite more than two decades of use, the optimal maintenance dose of tacrolimus for kidney transplant recipients is unknown. We hypothesized that HLA class II de novo donor-specific antibody ( dn DSA) development correlates with tacrolimus trough levels and the recipient’s individualized alloimmune risk determined by HLA-DR/DQ epitope mismatch. A cohort of 596 renal transplant recipients with 50,011 serial tacrolimus trough levels had HLA-DR/DQ eplet mismatch determined using HLAMatchmaker software. We analyzed the frequency of tacrolimus trough levels below a series of thresholds 6 months before dn DSA development in the same patients. Recipients with a high-risk HLA eplet mismatch score were less likely to tolerate low tacrolimus levels without developing dn DSA. We conclude that HLA-DR/DQ eplet mismatch and tacrolimus trough levels are independent predictors of dn DSA development. Recipients with high HLA alloimmune risk should not target tacrolimus levels <5 ng/ml unless essential, and monitoring for dn DSA may be advisable in this setting.