Primary hyperoxaluria type 1 (PH1) is caused by deficiency of the liver peroxisomal enzyme alanine-glyoxylate aminotransferase (AGT), which catalyzes the conversion of glyoxylate to glycine. When AGT activity is reduced or absent, glyoxylate is converted to oxalate, which cannot be metabolized and must be excreted by the kidneys. Insoluble calcium oxalate crystals form due to high urinary oxalate concentration. Urinary crystals aggregate, leading to nephrolithiasis (i.e., calcium oxalate kidney stones) in the renal pelvis / urinary tract; often the crystals deposit in kidney parenchyma (nephrocalcinosis). The age at presentation of PH1 ranges from infancy (age <12 months) in 10% of individuals, childhood/adolescence (age 1-17 years) in 70%, and adulthood (age =18 years) in 20%. The natural history of untreated PH1 is (1) progressive decline in kidney function due to complications of nephrolithiasis (e.g., urinary obstruction, infection) and nephrocalcinosis, and (2) in persons with advanced chronic kidney disease (CKD), high plasma oxalate concentrations result in other organ and tissue damage from calcium oxalate deposition (i.e., "oxalosis"), most commonly in the bones, heart, and retina. In the absence of treatment, progression of oxalosis results in death from kidney failure and/or other organ involvement.

Granulomatosis with polyangiitis, formerly termed Wegener granulomatosis, is a systemic disease with a complex genetic background. It is characterized by necrotizing granulomatous inflammation of the upper and lower respiratory tract, glomerulonephritis, vasculitis, and the presence of antineutrophil cytoplasmatic autoantibodies (ANCAs) in patient sera. These ANCAs are antibodies to a defined target antigen, proteinase-3 (PR3, PRTN3; 177020), which is present within primary azurophil granules of neutrophils (PMNs) and lysozymes of monocytes. On cytokine priming of PMNs, PR3 translocates to the cell surface, where PR3-ANCAs can interact with their antigens and activate PMNs. PMNs from patients with active GPA express PR3 on their surface, produce respiratory burst, and release proteolytic enzymes after activation with PR3-ANCAs. The consequence is a self-sustaining inflammatory process (Jagiello et al., 2004).