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As China rises to global power status, its relations with other major powers, including Russia, are constantly renegotiated. Energy figures prominently in both countries foreign policy. An extensive analysis of Chinese language sources academic debate 1997-2012 confirms a collision of interests over Central Asian reserves. While unanimous appeals to compromise render previous predictions of impending confrontation unconvincing, descriptions of Sino-Central Asian energy relations as central to energy security, and the explicit rejection of a Russian sphere of influence, also exclude a retreat. In the long term, China will likely replace Russia as the dominant force in Central Asia s energy sector, causing the Kremlin to perceive another encroachment . The current notion of a strategic partnership will inevitably be challenged. -- Cover.

The following paper strives to (1) present the reader with the results of my preceding book on the subject (Eder 2014) and to (2) review the trends that had been predicted therein. It provides a concise analysis of the Sino-Russian relationship’s history, an account of post-Soviet regional energy projects, and an analysis and interpretation of the mainland Chinese discourse on the impact of the Central Asian energy issue on this relationship. The issue has been broadly discussed as a possible source of friction since the global financial and economic crisis. Chinese authors predicted that a great deal of co-ordination and compromise would be needed because of Russian sensitivities but conveyed confidence that their country’s ‘inevitable’ expansion of crucial energy relations would be manageable. The book thus predicted a successful handling of competing interests in the short term but still foresaw a challenge to the ‘strategic partnership’ through the gradually shifting power balance. Over the last 18 months, China has advanced even faster and more comprehensively than anticipated and already overshadows Russia. Now undergirded by a more substantial political strategy, it quietly but resolutely pushes Moscow (and all its schemes of post-Soviet re-integration) aside. Managing ensuing frustrations and more blatant counter-measures will likely test the resolve and aptitude of Chinese policy-makers earlier than expected.

Antigen recognition of allo-peptides and HLA molecules leads to the activation of donor-reactive T-cells following transplantation, potentially causing T-cell-mediated rejection (TCMR). Sequencing of the T-cell receptor (TCR) repertoire can be used to track the donor-reactive repertoire in blood and tissue of patients after kidney transplantation. In this prospective cohort study, 117 non-sensitized kidney transplant recipients with anti-CD25 induction were included. Peripheral mononuclear cells (PBMCs) were sampled pre-transplant and at the time of protocol or indication biopsies together with graft tissue. Next-generation sequencing (NGS) of the CDR3 region of the TCRbeta chain was performed after donor stimulation in mixed lymphocyte reactions to define the donor-reactive TCR repertoire. Blood and tissue of six patients experiencing a TCMR and six patients without rejection on protocol biopsies were interrogated for these TCRs. To elucidate common features of T-cell clonotypes, a network analysis of the TCR repertoires was performed. After transplantation, the frequency of circulating donor-reactive CD4 T-cells increased significantly from 0.86 ± 0.40% to 2.06 ± 0.40% of all CD4 cells (p < 0.001, mean dif.: -1.197, CI: -1.802, -0.593). The number of circulating donor-reactive CD4 clonotypes increased from 0.72 ± 0.33% to 1.89 ± 0.33% (p < 0.001, mean dif.: -1.168, CI: -1.724, -0.612). No difference in the percentage of donor-reactive T-cells in the circulation at transplant biopsy was found between subjects experiencing a TCMR and the control group [p = 0.64 (CD4 ), p = 0.52 (CD8 )]. Graft-infiltrating T-cells showed an up to six-fold increase of donor-reactive T-cell clonotypes compared to the blood at the same time (3.7 0.6% and 2.4 1.5%), but the infiltrating TCR repertoire was not reflected by the composition of the circulating TCR repertoire despite some overlap. Network analysis showed a distinct segregation of the donor-reactive repertoire with higher modularity than the overall TCR repertoire in the blood. These findings indicate an unchoreographed process of diverse T-cell clones directed against numerous non-self antigens found in the allograft. Donor-reactive T-cells are enriched in the kidney allograft during a TCMR episode, and dominant tissue clones are also found in the blood. Clinicaltrials.gov: NCT: 03422224 (https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT03422224).

Background Kidney transplantation is the optimal treatment in end stage renal disease but the allograft survival is still hampered by immune reactions against the allograft. This process is driven by the recognition of allogenic antigens presented to T-cells and their unique T-cell receptor (TCR) via the major histocompatibility complex (MHC), which triggers a complex immune response potentially leading to graft injury. Although the immune system and kidney transplantation have been studied extensively, the subtlety of alloreactive immune responses has impeded sensitive detection at an early stage. Next generation sequencing of the TCR enables us to monitor alloreactive T-cell populations and might thus allow the detection of early rejection events. Methods/design This is a prospective cohort study designed to sequentially evaluate the alloreactive T cell repertoire after kidney transplantation. The TCR repertoire of patients who developed biopsy confirmed acute T cell mediated rejection (TCMR) will be compared to patients without rejection. To track the alloreactive subsets we will perform a mixed lymphocyte reaction between kidney donor and recipient before transplantation and define the alloreactive TCR repertoire by next generation sequencing of the complementary determining region 3 (CDR3) of the T cell receptor beta chain. After initial clonotype assembly from sequencing reads, TCR repertoire diversity and clonal expansion of T cells of kidney transplant recipients in periphery and kidney biopsy will be analyzed for changes after transplantation, during, prior or after a rejection. The goal of this study is to describe changes of overall T cell repertoire diversity, clonality in kidney transplant recipients, define and track alloreactive T cells in the posttransplant course and decipher patterns of expanded alloreactive T cells in acute cellular rejection to find an alternative monitoring to invasive and delayed diagnostic procedures. Discussion Changes of the T cell repertoire and tracking of alloreactive T cell clones after combined bone marrow and kidney transplant has proven to be of potential use to monitor the donor directed alloresponse. The dynamics of the donor specific T cells in regular kidney transplant recipients in rejection still rests elusive and can give further insights in human alloresponse. Trial registration Clinicaltrials.gov: NCT03422224 , registered February 5th 2018.