Metagenome-wide analysis uncovers gut microbial signatures and implicates taxon-specific functions in end-stage renal disease.

Background: The gut microbiota plays a crucial role in regulating host metabolism and producing uremic toxins in patients with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). Our objective is to advance toward a holistic understanding of the gut ecosystem and its functional capacity in such patients, which is still lacking.

Results: Herein, we explore the gut microbiome of 378 hemodialytic ESRD patients and 290 healthy volunteers from two independent cohorts via deep metagenomic sequencing and metagenome-assembled-genome-based characterization of their feces.

Association Between High NK-Cell Count and Remission of Primary Membranous Nephropathy: A Retrospective Chart Review and Pilot Study.

Purpose: Primary membranous nephropathy (PMN) is the most frequent cause of nephrotic syndrome in adults. Rituximab monotherapy has emerged as a front-line treatment for patients with PMN, but potential markers for predicting the response to rituximab are unknown.

Methods: In this single-arm retrospective pilot study, 48 patients with PMN without previous immunosuppressive therapy were enrolled.

DNA binding protein YB-1 is a part of the neutrophil extracellular trap mediation of kidney damage and cross-organ effects.

Open-heart surgery is associated with high morbidity, with acute kidney injury (AKI) being one of the most commonly observed postoperative complications. Following open-heart surgery, in an observational study we found significantly higher numbers of blood neutrophils in a group of 13 patients with AKI compared to 25 patients without AKI (AKI: 12.9±5.

Liver fibrosis therapy based on biomimetic nanoparticles which deplete activated hepatic stellate cells.

Liver fibrosis is one of the most common liver diseases with substantial morbidity and mortality. However, effective therapy for liver fibrosis is still lacking. Considering the key fibrogenic role of activated hepatic stellate cells (aHSCs), here we reported a strategy to deplete aHSCs by inducing apoptosis as well as quiescence.

Congenital renal arteriovenous malformation with cirsoid and cavernosal-type characteristics: a case report.

Renal arteriovenous malformations (AVMs) are infrequent vascular morphological anomalies. About 20% of AVMs are congenital renal AVMs (CRAVMs). A 53-year-old female patient presented with a 5-day history of gross hematuria and right flank pain.

Ultrasound for the treatment of acute kidney injury and other inflammatory conditions: a promising path toward noninvasive neuroimmune regulation.

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is an important clinical disorder with high prevalence, serious consequences, and limited therapeutic options. Modulation of neuroimmune interaction by nonpharmacological methods is emerging as a novel strategy for treating inflammatory diseases, including AKI. Recently, pulsed ultrasound (US) treatment was shown to protect from AKI by stimulating the cholinergic anti-inflammatory pathway.

METTL14-dependent m6A regulates vascular calcification induced by indoxyl sulfate.

Aims: Although the functional importance of N6-methyladenosine (m6A) in various fundamental bioprocesses are well known, its effect on vascular calcification is not well studied. We investigated the role of methyltransferase-like 14 (METTL14), an m6A methylase, in vascular calcification.

Main Methods: We used clinical human samples as well as rat models and primary human artery smooth muscle cell (HASMC) cultures to study the functional role of m6A and METTL14 in vascular calcification and in HASMCs.

Kidney injury molecule-1 expression predicts structural damage and outcome in histological acute tubular injury.

Background: A few studies have shown that urinary kidney injury molecule-1 (uKIM-1) levels are increased in acute kidney injury (AKI); however, the correlation between uKIM-1 and histological tubular injury, which is considered to be the gold standard for evaluating renal damage and predicting prognosis, is still unclear. We performed this study to determine whether the predicted value of uKIM-1 is correlated with renal KIM-1 (tKIM-1) expression and tissue damage in AKI patients.

Methods: This retrospective study recruited 14 healthy individuals and 27 biopsy-proven acute tubular injury (ATI) patients.

Amelioration of Uremic Toxin Indoxyl Sulfate-Induced Osteoblastic Calcification by SET Domain Containing Lysine Methyltransferase 7/9 Protein.

Background: Vascular calcification (VC) is a very common phenomenon in patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD). It has been reported that some histone methylation play a role in VC as an epigenetic regulator. Indoxyl sulfate (IS) is a protein-bound uremic toxin that has been proven as one of the major risk factors of cardiovascular disease in CKD.

Transforming growth factor-β1-overexpressing mesenchymal stromal cells induced local tolerance in rat renal ischemia/reperfusion injury.

Background: Regulatory T cells (Tregs) suppress excessive immune responses and play a crucial protective role in acute kidney injury (AKI). The aim of this study was to examine the therapeutic potential of transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1-overexpressing mesenchymal stromal cells (MSCs) in inducing local generation of Tregs in the kidney after ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury.

Methods: MSCs were transduced with a lentiviral vector expressing the TGF-β1 gene; TGF-β1-overexpressing MSCs (designated TGF-β1/MSCs) were then transfused into the I/R-injured kidney via the renal artery.

The orphan nuclear receptor RORα is a potential endogenous protector in renal ischemia/reperfusion injury.

Emerging evidence indicates that retinoid-related orphan receptor (ROR)α, a member of the ROR nuclear receptor subfamily, mediates key cellular adaptions to hypoxia and contributes to the pathophysiology of many disease states. However, the effects of RORα in renal ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury remain unclear. Wild-type (WT) C57 black 6 (C57BL/6) mice and RORα-deficient stagger [ROR(sg/sg)] mice and their WT littermates were used for in vivo studies.

Necrostatin-1 Attenuates Cisplatin-Induced Nephrotoxicity Through Suppression of Apoptosis and Oxidative Stress and Retains Klotho Expression.

Cisplatin is an effective chemotherapeutic drug, but the application in clinical is greatly limited by its nephrotoxicity. Necrostatin-1 (Nec-1), an inhibitor of RIP1 kinase, has been reported to inhibit RIP-mediated necroptosis. The aim of this study is to detect the protective effects of Nec-1 on the nephrotoxicity of cisplatin and to investigate its renoprotection mechanism.

Response Predictors to Calcineurin Inhibitors in Patients with Primary Membranous Nephropathy.

Background: Currently, there is an urgent need to find ways of identifying primary membranous nephropathy (PMN) patients who are likely to benefit from calcineurin inhibitors (CNI) or who are resistant to them. In this study, we employed nano-HPLC-MS/MS analysis to identify serum biomarkers that predict the clinical response to CNI therapy in PMN patients.

Methods: The endpoint was complete remission (CR) after CNI treatment.

Paracrine Activation of the Wnt/β-Catenin Pathway by Bone Marrow Stem Cell Attenuates Cisplatin-Induced Kidney Injury.

Background/aims: Cisplatin-induced acute kidney injury (AKI) involves damage to tubular cells via excess reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation. Stem cell-based therapies have shown great promise in AKI treatment. In this study, we aimed to assess the protective effect and mechanism of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cell (BMSC)-derived conditioned medium (CM) against cisplatin-induced AKI.

Therapeutic potential of mesenchymal stem cells in acute kidney injury is affected by administration timing.

Mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) transplantation is a promising therapy for acute kidney injury; however, the efficacy is limited due to poor survival after transplantation. In this study, we investigated how MSC transplantation timing affected the survival and therapeutic potential of MSCs in the kidney ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury model. After kidney I/R injury, the inflammatory process and tissue damage were characterized over 1 week post-I/R, we found that inflammation peaked at 12-24 h post-I/R (h.

Delayed ischaemic preconditioning in the presence of galectin-9 protects against renal ischaemic injury through a regulatory T-cell dependent mechanism.

Aim: Renal ischaemia/reperfusion injury (IRI) is a complication of major surgeries. Regulatory T cells (Tregs) can suppress immunologic damage in the renal IR. Previous studies indicated that delayed ischaemic preconditioning (IPC) partially attenuates IR by inducing Treg expansion.

A novel contrast-induced acute kidney injury model based on the 5/6-nephrectomy rat and nephrotoxicological evaluation of iohexol and iodixanol in vivo.

Contrast-induced acute kidney injury (CI-AKI) is a serious complication in patients after administration of iodinated contrast media. Proper animal models of CI-AKI can help understand the mechanisms involved and prevent the disorder. We used the 5/6-nephrectomized (NE) rat to develop a CI-AKI model and to evaluate differences in the toxic effects on the kidney between iohexol and iodixanol.

Volatile anesthetics in preventing acute kidney injury after cardiac surgery: a systematic review and meta-analysis.

Objective: Acute kidney injury is a common clinical complication of cardiac surgery. Volatile anesthetics have been shown to protect against it in animal experiments. Clinically, however, the effect of volatile anesthetics has been unclear.

Atorvastatin improves survival of implanted stem cells in a rat model of renal ischemia-reperfusion injury.

Aims: To investigate the impacts of combinatorial atorvastatin (Ator) perioperative administration and mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) implantation on therapeutic effects in the rat experimental acute kidney injury.

Methods: The model of renal ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury was induced by the release of bilateral renal pedicle clamps following 45 min of occlusion. Immediately after reperfusion, CM-Dil-labeled MSCs (1 × 10(6) cells) or vehicles only were administered through the carotid artery of the animals pretreated with or without Ator.

Maximum efficacy of mesenchymal stem cells in rat model of renal ischemia-reperfusion injury: renal artery administration with optimal numbers.

Backgrounds: Despite the potential therapeutic benefits, cell therapy in renal ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury is currently limited by low rates of cell engraftment after systemic delivery. In this study, we investigate whether locally administration through renal artery can enhance the migration and therapeutic potential of mesenchymal stem cells (MSCs) in ischemic kidney.

Methods: The model of renal I/R injury was induced by 45 min occlusion of the left renal pedicle and right nephrectomy in rat.

Hypoxic preconditioning with cobalt of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells improves cell migration and enhances therapy for treatment of ischemic acute kidney injury.

Mesenchymal stem cell (MSC) administration is known to enhance the recovery of the kidney following injury. Here we tested the potential of hypoxic-preconditioned-MSC transplantation to enhance the efficacy of cell therapy on acute kidney injury (AKI) by improving MSC migration to the injured kidney. Cobalt was used as hypoxia mimetic preconditioning (HMP).

Extragastrointestinal stromal tumor in a kidney transplant recipient.

The occurrence of de novo malignant neoplasms has been shown in post-transplant recipients receiving immunosuppressive treatment. We present a case of a rare extragastrointestinal stromal tumor (EGIST) located in the pelvic cavity of a kidney transplant patient. A 57-year-old female patient was admitted to our department because of non-specific lower abdominal pain 6 months after renal transplantation.