Virus-induced cellular immune mechanisms of injury to the kidney

Cellular immune systems play an important role in determining renal outcomes in virus-induced kidney diseases. Highlighted briefly are five different locations along the development of adaptive immune responses to viral infection that may promote injury to the renal parenchyma and the loss of renal function. This may occur because adaptive immune cells directly target infected renal parenchymal cells or because the kidney becomes a bystander organ of adaptive immune cell-mediated injury. Examples from recent studies are provided to illustrate how this may lead to clinically relevant renal disease.