Our spokesperson, Valen Keefer, continues to inspire the kidney disease and transplant community with her new blog for the PKD Foundation, PKD Will Not Beat Me. She’ll be sharing her story and fostering a positive space where people with PKD can come together to talk with each other, get information and lift each other’s spirits.

We are so proud of Valen and the wonderful work she does! Check out her first blog post and you’ll find out what PKD really stands for in Valen’s world.

A screen shot of Valen's blog

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Researchers from Washington University School of Medicine, working with a team of scientists in Paris, have identified two proteins, which are key to maintaining the stem cell pool and supporting growth during early kidney development. FGF9 and FGF20 are fibroblast growth factors, a family of proteins involved in embryonic development; the proliferation, migration and differentiation of many cells and tissues; as well as the growth of new blood vessels, tissue maintenance and wound healing. In lab experiments, FGF9 and FGF20 extended the life of mouse kidney stem cells. Continued research dedicated to growing and maintaining kidney stem cells may one day lead to the development of innovative treatments to repair damaged kidneys. Researcher Raphael Kopan, PhD said, “The holy grail would be to deliver these cells back to a diseased kidney. This is a very small step. But we hope this will be a stimulus to the field, for us and for others to continue thinking about how to convince these cells to stick around longer.”

Source:

Clues Found to Way Embryonic Kidney Maintains Its Fleeting Stem Cells, Science Daily, June 11, 2012

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Diabetes is on the rise in American children and teens. Recent studies from University of Colorado School of Public Health have uncovered a disturbing link between Type 2 diabetes in kids and the risk of early kidney damage. Our infographic below highlights the facts uncovered by the studies.

Source: Diabetes Rising Rapidly Among U.S. Kids, U.S. News & World Report, June 9, 2012

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Let’s wipe out kidney disease together!

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Researchers from Boston University School of Medicine have identified a link between the G alpha i-2 sub-unit protein pathway in the brain and renal excretion of sodium. They found that changes in salt intake affected changes in G alpha i-2 sub-unit protein levels and were able to prove that the protein pathway plays an important role in calming the renal sympathetic nervous system and facilitating the elimination of salt through the kidneys. The discovery points to a promising new target for treating salt-sensitive hypertension.

Source:

Researcher Finds Link Between Brain Signaling and Renal Function, Medical News Today, June 7, 2012

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Researchers from Indiana University School of Medicine have shown that renal stem cell transplants may have the potential to repair damaged kidneys. In the study using rats with acute kidney injury and CKD, the scientists reprogrammed adult kidney cells to express the SAA gene, thus producing the SAA protein, which is essential to early kidney development as well as repair after acute injury. The reprogrammed cells were able to travel to damaged areas of the kidney, successfully integrate themselves and regenerate tissue, improving kidney function and reducing inflammation and fibrosis. Some of the rats were treated with donor stem cells, while others were treated with their own cells. Testing such a procedure in humans is a long way off, but the results of the study are encouraging. Researcher Katherine J. Kelly, M.D. said, “Ultimately, you can imagine taking a part of someone’s kidney, expanding those cells with appropriate growth factors in a tissue culture dish, and then giving the cells back.”

Sources:

Intravenous Kidney Cell Transplant Experiments Raise Hope for Future Human Kidney Failure Treatments, Science Daily, May 31, 2012

Intravenous Renal Cell Transplantation (IRCT) for Rats with Acute and Chronic Renal Failure, American Journal of Physiology, Renal Physiology, May 11, 2012

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A team of researchers from Baker IDI Heart and Diabetes Institute in Australia have shown that renal denervation, a new investigational technique to curb hard-to-treat blood pressure is safe in the short term for hypertensive patients with stage 3 to 4 CKD. Renal denervation uses radio frequency waves to deaden certain overactive sympathetic nerves in the kidneys, thereby disrupting signaling that can lead to high blood pressure.  Following the procedure, the patients in this study had lower blood pressure over a 12 month period. Estimated glomerular filtration rates remained the same after surgery.

Because overactivity of the sympathetic nervous system leads to worsening kidney disease as well as cardiovascular damage, the researchers believe renal denervation could protect the kidneys as well as the heart in some CKD patients. More studies, including those that explore the long term effects of the procedure will be needed to test their theories.

Sources:

Simple Procedure Lowers Blood Pressure in Kidney Disease Patients, Eureka Alert, May 17, 2012

Renal Denervation in Moderate to Severe CKD, Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, May 17, 2012

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