COLUMBIA, Mo. ― 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 from the University of Missouri School of Medicine and NextGen Precision Health Building are studying possible treatments and have identified several genes that may be potential therapeutic targets.
"CKD is not typically recognized as the public health crisis that it is," said study author Dr. Alejandro Chade. "This is a progressive disease, and early on, as many as nine in 10 adults have the disease but don't 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."
In CKD, the kidneys are damaged and aren't as effective at cleaning and removing waste from the body. These organs usually show signs of small blood vessel loss, inflammation and fibrosis, which is excessive scar tissue that replaces the normal kidney tissue.
Chade's 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.
"We identified genes that seem involved with the signs of kidney damage," Chade said. "Some 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."
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.
"Chronic kidney disease is something many adults don't even know they're fighting," Chade said. "Developing new therapies and treatments for CKD can help prevent or put off more drastic treatments – like dialysis or transplantation – and preserve the patient's health and lifestyle for longer."
Alejandro R. Chade, MD is a professor of Medical Pharmacology and Physiology and Medicine at the Mizzou School of Medicine, and a NextGen Precision Health Investigator.
"Renal Single-Nuclear Transcriptomics Identifies Novel Therapeutic Targets in a Preclinical Model of CKD" was recently published in Kidney360, an official journal of the American Society of Nephrology. In addition to Chade, Mizzou study authors include data scientist Sathesh Sivasankaran and research specialists Rhys Sitz and Elizabeth McCarthy. Dr. Alfonso Eirin from the Mayo Clinic also contributed.
