Frontiers in Bioscience-Landmark (FBL) is published by IMR Press from Volume 26 Issue 5 (2021). Previous articles were published by another publisher on a subscription basis, and they are hosted by IMR Press on imrpress.com as a courtesy and upon agreement with Frontiers in Bioscience.
Accurate diagnosis of acute rejection remains a formidable challenge in organ transplantation. The current gold standard diagnostic test for acute rejection is histological examination of the transplanted organ. However, biopsy procedures are invasive and complications occur. Furthermore, sampling errors may bias the histological diagnosis. Not uncommonly, empiric anti-rejection therapy has to be provided prior to the availability of a confirmatory histological report. Thus, there is an urgent need for specific and sensitive noninvasive biomarkers of acute rejection. Herein, we review noninvasive strategies for the diagnosis of acute rejection of solid organ transplants.