# Transplant Pathology and Tissue Imaging Core (Core B)

> **NIH NIH U19** · UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH · 2021 · $143,838

## Abstract

The Transplant Pathology and Tissue Imaging Core (Core B) will play a critical, strongly-integrated scientific
role in supporting the 2 Projects with strong emphasis on the central focus of the Program. The Program concerns
regulatory immune cell therapy using innovative strategies, analysis of underlying mechanisms and novel
biomarker studies in NHP renal transplantation. Each Project requires: 1) analysis of routinely-stained slides for
pathologic processes relevant to rejection and analyses of allograft tissue from recipients that may exhibit
operational tolerance; 2) transplant tissues will be evaluated for cellular and molecular evidence of rejection or
tolerance, including the presence and phenotype of APCs, NK cells, effector and regulatory T cell subsets, B cell
populations and their expression of molecules relevant to mechanistic aspects of the study and 3) the effects of
these cells, molecules and their interactions on surrounding tissues, and vice versa. The Core is ideally suited to
conduct these studies because: a) the Core Leader has long-standing experience, including studies on clinical
operational tolerance and published extensively (including with other Program investigators in this area; and b) the
Core has developed cutting-edge pathology and image analysis tools (multiplex quantum dot immunolabeling
combined with high resolution whole slide image (WSI) digital scanning and automated/computerized image
analysis that enables more in- depth and objective evaluation of tissue to quantitatively study social/interactive and
3-dimensional relationships between and among various infiltrative cell types and parenchymal and stromal
tissues.
The principal roles of the Core are:
A) Detailed histopathologic assessment of native and allograft tissue specimens, including scoring of standardized
histopathologic and immunohistochemical parameters, and rendering diagnoses relevant to rejection/tolerance.
B) Specialized multiplex quantum dot-based immunolabeling analyses to localize, quantify, and assess donor-
specific effector, memory T cells and Treg responses. In addition, we will seek to validate the Tmem transcription
factor eomesodermin as a predictive biomarker of graft rejection vs. tolerance.
C) Create high resolution (40x) WSI files so that tissue sections can be reviewed and analyzed, in detail, on a
computer screen instead of at a microscope and assist investigators in automated image analysis.
D) Prioritize specimen analyses and communicate results and interpretations to the PLs of each project and
suggesting alternatives where appropriate; participate in Program investigator meetings, as arranged by Core A.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10217984
- **Project number:** 5U19AI131453-05
- **Recipient organization:** UNIVERSITY OF PITTSBURGH AT PITTSBURGH
- **Principal Investigator:** ANTHONY J DEMETRIS
- **Activity code:** U19 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $143,838
- **Award type:** 5
- **Project period:** 2017-08-17 → 2022-07-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10217984

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10217984, Transplant Pathology and Tissue Imaging Core (Core B) (5U19AI131453-05). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-25 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10217984. Licensed CC0.

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