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New research has identified possible therapeutic targets for chronic kidney disease.<\/p>\n
Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is on the rise in the United States, with roughly 36 million adults estimated to have the condition. As more people develop the disease, researchers are studying possible treatments.<\/p>\n
\u201cCKD is not typically recognized as the public health crisis that it is,\u201d says study author Alejandro Chade, a professor of medical pharmacology and physiology and medicine at the University of Missouri School of Medicine and a NextGen Precision Health Investigator..<\/p>\n
\u201cThis is a progressive disease, and early on, as many as nine in 10 adults have the disease but don\u2019t realize it. By the time it is diagnosed, these patients often need dialysis or even a kidney transplant. Finding treatments that postpone end-stage kidney failure can result in a longer, higher-quality life for this population.\u201d<\/p>\n
In CKD, the kidneys are damaged and aren\u2019t as effective at cleaning and removing waste from the body. These organs usually show signs of small blood vessel loss, inflammation, and fibrosis<\/a>, which is excessive scar tissue that replaces the normal kidney tissue.<\/p>\n Chade\u2019s research examined how these symptoms develop. Using animal models, his team analyzed the protein and cell interactions and found several genes that could be potential targets for CKD-related therapy and treatment. For example, silencing one of the genes was linked with reduced fibrotic activity, suggesting it plays some sort of role in kidney function.<\/p>\n \u201cWe identified genes that seem involved with the signs of kidney damage,\u201d Chade says. \u201cSome genes had higher activity in CKD models, and others were involved in the communication pathways that enable inflammation, fibrosis or the growth of new blood vessels.\u201d<\/p>\n The next step is to determine how and where else these genes are expressed in the body and study what happens when moderating their activity, as there may be other unintended effects to other parts of the body.<\/p>\n \u201cChronic kidney disease is something many adults don\u2019t even know they\u2019re fighting,\u201d Chade says. \u201cDeveloping new therapies and treatments for CKD can help prevent or put off more drastic treatments\u2014like dialysis or transplantation\u2014and preserve the patient\u2019s health and lifestyle for longer.\u201d<\/p>\n The research appears in Kidney360<\/a>.<\/p>\n Additional coauthors are from Mizzou and the Mayo Clinic.<\/p>\n