Advisory Committee Chair
Sunnie Thompson
Advisory Committee Members
David Bedwell
Elliot Lefkowitz
Document Type
Thesis
Date of Award
1-1-2025
Degree Name by School
Master of Science (MS) Heersink School of Medicine
Abstract
A kidney transplant is the most common form of organ transplant in the United States. The waitlist of patients waiting for a kidney transplant totals over 80,000. In recent years, kidney transplants have been performed more than ever before, but the waitlist continues to grow. This is due to the constant addition of new patients being added, as well as, patients who obtained a kidney transplant, but their transplant failed and were added back to the waitlist. While the development of more specific and effective immunosuppressive drugs given to transplant recipients have reduced the cases of acute rejection, it has caused a rise in polyomavirus associated nephropathy (PVAN). PVAN is a disease caused by the uncontrolled reactivation of BK polyomavirus (BKPyV) in kidney transplant patients. BKPyV is asymptomatic in immunocompetent individuals, however in immune–compromised patients when reactivation occurs the immune system is unable to control it, causing the infection to spread and damage the donor kidney leading to allograft failure. With the rise of PVAN in recent years, there is no antiviral treatment available. The only treatment for BKPyV reactivation in transplant patients is the reduction of immune–suppressive drugs, which increase the risk of acute rejection. Reactivation of BKPyV increases the risk of mutation that can increase the expression of genes encoded in the early region of the genome important for viral production. BKPyV infection alters the cell cycle causing cell cycle arrest allowing the virus to constantly replicate its viral DNA. We propose that treating BKPyV reactivation with antivirals that target the ways in which BKPyV relies on cell cycle arrest will reduce the amount of viral production.
Recommended Citation
Kaul, Peter Alexander, "The Antiviral Treatment Of Bk Polyomavirus" (2025). All ETDs from UAB. 6853.
https://digitalcommons.library.uab.edu/etd-collection/6853
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