Compound Stops Progressive Kidney Disease

Progressive kidney diseases, whether caused by obesity, hypertension, diabetes, or rare genetic mutations, often have the same outcome: The cells responsible for filtering the blood are destroyed. Reporting in Science, a team led by researchers from the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard, Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and Harvard Medical School describes a new approach to prevent death in these essential kidney cells. Studying multiple animal models of kidney disease, the team discovered a compound that can impede loss of the filtration cells and restore kidney function. The work, inspired by an investigation into a genetic form of the condition, has the potential to affect therapeutic research for millions of people suffering from progressive kidney diseases.