The role of programed death-ligand 1 in renal diseases

Abstract

Programed death-ligand 1 (PD-L1, B7-H1, CD274) is a coinhibitory molecule that plays a vital role in the pathogenesis of both neoplastic and nonneoplastic diseases. However, the role of PD-L1 in primary and secondary renal diseases remains to be clarified. Previous studies have shown that both intracellular and intercellular PD-L1 participate in renal diseases via complex mechanisms. PD-L1 plays a dual role in lupus nephritis and has a protective effect in renal ischemia reperfusion injury and nephrotoxic nephritis but not in proliferative immune complex glomerulonephritis. PD-L1 supplementation, anti-PD-L1 antibodies, and D-peptide antagonists have promising application prospects in the treatment of renal diseases. In this review, we summarize the available data published on PD-L1 in renal diseases for the first time.

Keywords:

• PD-L1
• renal disease
• lupus nephritis
• acute kidney injury
• immunotherapy

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by Medical Science and Technology Foundation of Guangdong Province under grant No. A2016316.