The Johns Hopkins Transplant Research Center (TRC) is a multidisciplinary research partnership between the Department of Medicine's Division of Infectious Diseases and the Department of Surgery's Division of Transplantation.
Our Scientific Cores
The Transplant Research Center includes four scientific cores:
Clinical Studies and Trials
Designs and implements investigator-initiated and sponsored clinical trials in infectious diseases, transplant medicine and surgery.
Epidemiology and Quantitative Analysis
Designs and implements observational and retrospective studies using large data registries.
Ethics and Qualitative Research
Develops rigorous conceptual and ethical frameworks to illuminate patient experiences and enhance the practice of transplantation.
Translational and Basic Science
Designs and implements mechanistic and translational studies in the areas of immunology and infection.
Research Highlights
The TRC is supported by over $50 million in funding to conduct the most cutting-edge organ research. We have more than 600 peer-reviewed publications in the top medical, surgical and scientific journals.
HIV Organ Policy Equity (HOPE)
With more than 100,000 people currently waiting for a life-saving transplant, expanding the donor pool is an imperative. Dr. Christine Durand and our TRC team lead HOPE in Action, a multi-site NIH-funded trial, bringing HOPE to every community and studying the long-term safety and feasibility of HIV-HIV organ donation and transplantation.
Alcohol-Associated Liver Disease
Alcohol-associated liver disease (ALD) is the leading indication for liver transplants in the US. Historically, most centers required patients to abstain from alcohol for six months before their liver transplants, and many with severe ALD could not receive transplants in time. The NIH/NIAAA-funded DELTA Center for Alcohol Research is home to interdisciplinary bench, clinical, and population health research studies dedicated to enhancing the delivery of early liver transplants to persons with severe ALD. Our team of experts is committed to developing evidence-based practices and care protocols for ALD that transplant centers can implement worldwide.
National Vaccine Research Study for Transplant Recipients
COVID-19 Antibody Testing of Recipients of Solid Organ Transplants is being led by the transplant team at Johns Hopkins. The study has been approved by the Johns Hopkins Institutional Review Board (IRB00248540). The purpose of this research study is to determine COVID-19 antibody levels in transplant recipients who get the COVID-19 vaccine.
PREVENT HCV
Expanding the donor pool through the use of organs from donors with hepatitis C virus for recipients without hepatitis C (HCV D+/R-) has become more common in recent years due to the discovery of an effective cure for hepatitis C. The PREVENT HCV study, a multi-site NIH-funded randomized controlled trial, aims to find out which is better in HCV D+/R- kidney transplants: taking a shorter course of the HCV medication that starts prior to transplant, or taking a full course of treatment that starts after treatment.
