Troise Dario, Infante Barbara, Mercuri Silvia, Rossini Michele, Gesualdo Loreto, Stallone Giovanni
Nephrology, Dialysis and Transplantation Unit, Advanced Research Center on Kidney Aging (A.R.cK.A), Department of Medical and Surgical Sciences, University of Foggia, 71122 Foggia, Italy.
Renal Medicine and Baxter Novum, Department of Clinical Science, Intervention and Technology, Karolinska Institutet, 141 52 Stockholm, Sweden.
Int J Mol Sci. 2025 May 24;26(11):5053. doi: 10.3390/ijms26115053.
C3 glomerulopathy (C3G) is the predominant cause of complement-mediated membranoproliferative glomerulonephritis and is considered a rare disorder caused by genetic or acquired dysregulation of the alternative complement pathway. There are no established treatment guidelines for treating kidney-transplanted recipients with C3G recurrence, as they are already on immunosuppressive protocols. Furthermore, non-complement-specific immunosuppressive drugs appear to offer limited benefits for patients with C3G in native kidneys. Therefore, modulating the complement system appears to be the most effective strategy for this specific patient population. We describe the use of Iptacopan in a 38-year-old kidney-transplanted patient with C3G recurrence. Iptacopan was associated with a significant and striking improvement in the patient's clinical and laboratories status. A follow-up kidney biopsy performed 5 months after the initiation of Iptacopan revealed a reduction in endocapillary, extracapillary and mesangial hypercellularity, along with a decreased extent of parietal proteinaceous deposits observed on light microscopy. The direct control of the complement dysregulation underlying the pathogenesis of C3G with Iptacopan was accompanied by improvements in clinical, laboratory and histological features, with demonstrated reduced disease activity and slowed disease progression. Therefore, the case report described is intended to shed light on the potential role of new AP complement blockers in the treatment of C3G.
C3肾小球病(C3G)是补体介导的膜增生性肾小球肾炎的主要病因,被认为是一种由替代补体途径的遗传或获得性失调引起的罕见疾病。对于接受肾移植且出现C3G复发的患者,目前尚无既定的治疗指南,因为他们已经在接受免疫抑制方案治疗。此外,非补体特异性免疫抑制药物对患有原发性肾脏C3G的患者似乎益处有限。因此,调节补体系统似乎是针对这一特定患者群体的最有效策略。我们描述了Iptacopan在一名38岁肾移植且C3G复发患者中的应用。Iptacopan使该患者的临床和实验室状况有了显著且惊人的改善。在开始使用Iptacopan 5个月后进行的随访肾活检显示,毛细血管内、毛细血管外和系膜细胞增多减少,同时在光学显微镜下观察到壁层蛋白样沉积物的范围也有所减小。Iptacopan直接控制C3G发病机制中潜在的补体失调,同时临床、实验室和组织学特征得到改善,疾病活动度降低,疾病进展减缓。因此,所描述的病例报告旨在阐明新型替代途径补体阻滞剂在治疗C3G中的潜在作用。