INDIANAPOLIS, June 23 (UPI) -- U.S. medical scientists say they've determined a protein involved in the kidney's embryonic development might play a future role in treating kidney failure.
Indiana University School of Medicine researchers led by Drs. Katherine Kelly and Jesus Dominguez say they have successfully treated acute kidney injury in laboratory experiments using cells that were genetically reprogrammed to produce the protein. They said their findings suggest a potential future treatment using such cells delivered intravenously instead of surgically.
The scientists said they were able to treat acute kidney failure in animal models using cells modified to produce a protein that normally is found when kidneys first develop in embryos. That protein, called SAA, also is produced by the liver during periods of bodily stress produced by infections, fever or surgery.
The study is detailed in the early online edition of the American Journal of Physiology-Renal Physiology and is to appear in the journal's August print issue.
