Kidney News and Research

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America’s epidemic of children with type 2 diabetes

With the number of children suffering from type 2 diabetes growing at an alarming rate, physicians gathered Saturday to discuss strategies for prevention and treatment of the disease among children and adolescents at the American Association of Clinical Endocrinologists (AACE) 18th Annual Meeting & Clinical Congress.

18 May 2009

Research points to a new way to protect kidneys threatened by insufficient blood or toxins

Better treatments for acute renal failure may be possible by blocking the mitochondrial fragmentation that occurs when kidneys don't get enough blood or are exposed to toxins, researchers at the Medical College of Georgia report in the may issue of the Journal of Clinical Investigation.

18 May 2009

Transplant patients experience worse outcomes from cancer

After comparing two patient cancer registries - one featuring transplant patients and the other the general population - researchers at the University of Cincinnati (UC) have found that transplant patients experience worse outcomes from cancer.

17 May 2009

Pazopanib shows promise for aggressive thyroid cancer

A medication that helps stop the growth of new blood vessels has produced dramatic benefits for some patients with aggressive thyroid cancer, research from Mayo Clinic indicates.

17 May 2009

Cytomegalovirus may cause high blood pressure

A new study suggests for the first time that cytomegalovirus (CMV), a common viral infection affecting between 60 and 99 percent of adults worldwide, is a cause of high blood pressure, a leading risk factor for heart disease, stroke and kidney disease.

15 May 2009

Old diabetes drug Metformin teaches experts new tricks

Research from the Johns Hopkins Children's Center reveals that the drug most commonly used in type 2 diabetics who don't need insulin works on a much more basic level than once thought, treating persistently elevated blood sugar - the hallmark of type 2 diabetes - by regulating the genes that control its production.

15 May 2009

Scientists develop tool to study a deadly parasite’s histone code

In the Japanese art of paper folding, a series of folds can make the same sheet of paper into a ballerina or baby elephant. But try unfolding the baby elephant and making it into a ballerina. It's like trying to make a neuron from a kidney cell. Epigenetics, it turns out, isn't much different from this old Japanese art: Each fold, or epigenetic crease, both limits and permits further potential folds in a way that mirrors how epigenetic changes seal a cell's fate.

13 May 2009

Discovery of molecular defect involved in hearing loss

Scientists from The Scripps Research Institute have elucidated the action of a protein, harmonin, which is involved in the mechanics of hearing.

13 May 2009

Diuretic drug works best at reducing risk of heart failure in hypertension

New research supports the findings of a landmark drug comparison study published in 2002 in which a diuretic drug or "water pill" outperformed other medications for high blood pressure. A scientific team including investigators from The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston reports the findings in the May 11 issue of the Archives of Internal Medicine.

13 May 2009

Sodium bicarbonate based hydration is optimal treatment strategy to prevent contrast-induced nephropathy

The research, published in the open access journal BMC Medicine, shows that although the benefit may have been overestimated by previous studies, sodium bicarbonate is clearly superior to normal saline.

12 May 2009

In retinal disease, sight may depend on second sites

If two people have the same genetic disease, why would one person go blind in childhood but the other later in life or not at all? For a group of genetic diseases - so-called ciliary diseases that include Bardet-Biedl syndrome, Meckel-Gruber syndrome, and Joubert syndrome - the answer lies in one gene that is already linked to two of these diseases and also seems to increase the risk of progressive blindness in patients with other ciliary diseases. The findings are published online this week at Nature Genetics.

12 May 2009

Sinobiopharma announces Chinese approval of Perindopril

Sinobiopharma, Inc. has announced that it has received approval from the Chinese State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA) to manufacture and market its formulation of Perindopril, an anti-hypertension drug.

12 May 2009

New genetic clues to treatment of hypertension

An international research team has identified a number of unsuspected genetic variants associated with systolic blood pressure (SBP), diastolic blood pressure (DBP), and hypertension (high blood pressure), suggesting potential avenues of investigation for the prevention or treatment of hypertension.

12 May 2009

FDA approves Avastin (bevacizumab) for treatment of glioblastoma multiforme

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently approved Avastin (bevacizumab) to treat patients with glioblastoma multiforme (GBM) when this form of brain cancer continues to progress following standard therapy.

7 May 2009

New device for patients too sick for open-heart surgery

An innovative device that acts like a belt to reshape an enlarged, leaky heart valve is providing a minimally invasive treatment option for patients who are too sick for open-heart surgery.

7 May 2009

Hypoglycemia poses a serious health threat for patients with chronic kidney disease

Low blood sugar, or hypoglycemia, poses a serious health threat for patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD), according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Clinical Journal of the American Society Nephrology (CJASN).

7 May 2009

Kidney disease patients reap rewards of prevention

Making sure you see your doctor and have tests run on a regular basis can prevent serious complications of chronic kidney disease (CKD), according to a study appearing in an upcoming issue of the Journal of the American Society Nephrology (JASN).

7 May 2009

FDA approves Creon (pancrelipase) - designed to help those with cystic fibrosis

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration announced that it has approved Creon (pancrelipase), a pancreatic enzyme replacement product designed to help patients with cystic fibrosis and others with exocrine pancreatic insufficiency (EPI) digest and absorb nutrients from foods.

7 May 2009

Elevated level of certain protein in urine linked to increased risk for blood clots

Preliminary research suggests that higher than normal levels of the protein albumin in urine is associated with an increased risk for blood clots in the deep veins of the legs or lungs (venous thromboembolism; VTE), according to a study in the May 6 issue of JAMA, the Journal of the American Medical Association.

5 May 2009

Concern raised over dietary supplements

As the FDA warns consumers to stop using Hydroxycut products, a new editorial published in the May 2009 issue of The FASEB Journal shows that this FDA warning is not unique.

5 May 2009