Join your colleagues and the entire transplant community for the 2025 AST Virtual Run and Fitness Challenge, taking place April 1 – June 15!

Together, we’re aiming to complete 48,149 miles—one for every organ transplant performed in the U.S. last year. Whether you walk, run, bike, swim, or choose any other form of exercise, every mile counts toward our shared goal.

Together, it is our goal to complete a mile for every organ transplanted last year. Can we count on you to help us reach this goal? All funds raised will support a transplant research grant.

Immerse yourself in the latest research and breakthroughs in the field of transplantation at WTC 2025, hosted in the dynamic city of San Francisco. This global congress draws experts, healthcare practitioners, and researchers and provides them with an opportunity to explore in-depth the sector’s newest developments. To register, click here.

Join your colleagues in sharing innovative approaches to clinical practice, gaining insight into transplant finance, and expanding your leadership skills at the AST Medical Directors Forum.

We are excited to announce that each of our Communities of Practice (COPs) is offering travel grants to support attendance at the World Transplant Congress (WTC) 2025!

These grants are designed to help offset travel costs and ensure broad representation of our vibrant transplant community. The application deadline is May 11, 2025.

The WTC Student Ambassador Program aims to promote transplantation as an exciting and rewarding field of specialization for 3rd and 4th-year medical students. By engaging future medical professionals, this program will foster awareness and enthusiasm for organ donation and transplantation while enhancing participation at the WTC 2025 Congress. The deadline to apply is April 30, 2025.
 

On behalf of the AST, the European Society for Organ Transplantation (ESOT), and The Transplantation Society (TTS), we are excited to announce that registration is officially open for the International Transplantation Science Meeting 2025. 

ITS 2025 marks the fourth tri-society event in this global collaboration, bringing together top experts, early-career researchers, and transplant professionals worldwide. This meeting offers an exciting forum to explore cutting-edge basic and translational science in and beyond the field of transplantation.

Check out these complimentary on-demand sessions from CEoT 2025 - featuring OPTN modernization discussions and expert insights on the future of transplantation. 

Join the fun this April by exploring our incredible partner sites on the AST Partner Connect platform! Keep an eye out for the hidden Donate Life cardinals for your chance to win. Up to four chances to win $100 Amazon Gift Card - we’re picking one lucky winner each week!

Week 1 Winner: Eve Carciofi
Week 2 Winner: Vikas R. Dharnidharka

We’re thrilled to kick off AST’s 2025 Member Referral Campaign, where you can grow our vibrant transplant community and win exciting prizes! This year, there’s even more to look forward to with the World Transplant Congress (WTC) happening this August in San Francisco.

By referring your colleagues, you're helping them access AST’s exclusive resources and connecting them with an incredible global community ahead of this must-attend event.

The AST submitted a response to the OPTN’s special public comment proposal, “Revisions to Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) Policies to Align with Federal Regulatory Updates.” AST’s comment, submitted on April 21, 2025, reflects input from its communities of practice, OPTN Policy Committee, and Board of Directors.

Funding cuts to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) put critical transplant research at risk. NIH-funded studies have driven advancements in transplantation, improving patient outcomes and paving the way for innovations like new immunosuppressants, immune tolerance strategies, and even organ regeneration. Without this support, progress in the field could slow, affecting countless patients and families.

We need your help to ensure that transplant research remains a priority. Use our advocacy page to contact your members of Congress and urge them to protect NIH funding. Together, we can make a difference. Take action today!

The AST developed a survey aimed at soliciting your perspectives on legislative and regulatory issues that significantly influence both patient care and professional practice. Our goal is to establish a platform for our membership to share their invaluable ideas and perspectives and actively engage with the Public Policy Committee and AST leadership. We look forward to your input as we navigate the dynamics of our ever-evolving landscape of transplant care and practice.

Source: Transplantation Proceedings
Twenty-seven diabetic patients who underwent kidney transplantation between August 2020 and August 2023 were included. Patients with HbA1c >8% were received Empagliflozin treatment. A 24-hour Holter ECG monitoring was performed before and one year after beginning Empagliflozin. Holter ECGs were evaluated by a single cardiologist, comparing ventricular ectopic beats (VEB) and supraventricular ectopic beats (SEB) arrhythmias and heart rate variability parameters before and after one year of Empagliflozin treatment.
 

Source: Transplant Infectious Disease
Our goal is to understand whether there is an association between Abx exposure—and the inferred downstream damage to the intestinal microbiome—and the key patient outcomes of overall survival and rejection following liver transplant.

Source: Transplant International
Normothermic machine perfusion (NMP) provides opportunity for viability assessment of donated kidneys. Diminished microvascular perfusion, despite adequate total blood flow, is a key pathophysiology in ischaemia-mediated acute kidney injury. Contrast-enhanced ultrasound (CEUS) could allow objective assessment of microvascular perfusion during renal NMP. Blood-based NMP was performed on porcine kidneys (circulatory death model) and human kidneys declined for transplant (preclinical).