Table 4.
Histologic findings in renal biopsies of patients with THSD7A-associated MN
| Renal Biopsy Findings | THSD7A-associated MN | P Value | |
|---|---|---|---|
| No Malignancy | Malignancy | ||
| Whole cohort | 14 | 4 | |
| IgG1-positive biopsies (%) | 13 (100)a | 3 (100)a | >0.99 |
| IgG4-positive biopsies (%) | 9 (64) | 2 (50) | 0.61 |
| Inflammatory cells per glomerulus, median, interquartile rangeb | 3.0, 2.0–4.0 | 4.5, 2.0–8.25 | 0.04 |
| Glomeruli with >8 inflammatory cells per glomerulusb | 4/105 (3.8) | 5/20 (25.0) | <0.01 |
| Biopsies with glomerular thrombi (%) | 0 (0) | 0 (0) | >0.99 |
| Biopsies with mesangial deposits (%) | 3 (21.4) | 1 (25.0) | 0.88 |
| Biopsies with subendothelial electron–dense deposits (%) | 1 (7.1) | 0 (0.0) | 0.58 |
| IgM-positive biopsies (%) | 2 (14.2) | 0 (0.0) | 0.42 |
| IgA-positive biopsies (%) | 2 (14.2) | 0 (0.0) | 0.42 |
| Biopsies with minor (<15%) tubulointerstitial fibrosis (%) | 8 (57.1) | 3 (75.0) | 0.52 |
| Biopsies with moderate (16%–49%) tubulointerstitial fibrosis (%) | 5 (35.7) | 0 (0.0) | 0.16 |
| Biopsies with extended (>50%) tubulointerstitial fibrosis (%) | 1 (7.1) | 0 (0.0) | 0.58 |
| Biopsies with stage 1 glomerular lesions according to the work by Ehrenreich and Churg20 (%) | 4 (28.6) | 1 (25.0.0) | 0.89 |
| Biopsies with stage 2 glomerular lesions according to the work by Ehrenreich and Churg20 (%) | 8 (57.1) | 2 (50.0) | 0.80 |
| Biopsies with stage 3 glomerular lesions according to the work by Ehrenreich and Churg20 (%) | 2 (14.2) | 0 (0) | 0.42 |
| Biopsies with stage 4 glomerular lesions according to the work by Ehrenreich and Churg20 (%) | 0 (0) | 1 (25.0) | 0.54 |
| Biopsies with nephrosclerosis (%) | 4 (28.6) | 1 (25.0) | 0.89 |
| Glomeruli per biopsy, median, interquartile range | 9.5, 6.25–27.5 | 9.5, 7.75–12 | 0.71 |
| Scarred glomeruli per biopsy specimen, median, interquartile range | 0.0%, 0.0%–8.76% | 0.0%, 0.0%–5.56% | 0.63 |
Interstitial fibrosis was classified as minor, moderate, or extended when ≤15%, >15% but ≤50%, or >50%, respectively, of the tubulointerstitial space was involved.
a
Analysis of IgG1 could not be performed in two biopsies; in these cases, no more renal tissue was available.
b
The number of inflammatory cells per glomerulus was analyzed as described in a previous publication.19 Inflammatory cells were counted on 105 glomeruli from renal biopsies of patients with no malignancy and 20 glomeruli from renal biopsies of patients with malignancy.