kidneyIn a surprising revelation, scientists found a new factor that may contribute to chronic kidney disease (CKD), a condition impairs kidney's ability to properly function, leading to severe complications. It affects nearly one in ten people across the globe.
The kidneys play a pivotal role in filtering waste and toxins from the blood, but in CKD their function gradually declines.
One of the most prevalent causes of this disease is fibrosis, a process in which damaged kidney tissue gets scarred rather than healing properly, leading to loss of function and increased risks of cardiac disease.
Researchers at the University of Edinburgh have now detected a protein called Indian Hedgehog (IHH) as a trigger of this scarring process. While its name may sound unusual, the protein appears to play a serious role in renal injury.
The study further discovered that IHH levels rise as kidneys age and become injured. Increased levels of the protein were detected in individuals living with chronic kidney disease and cardiac issues, indicating a potential link suggesting a possible link.
In the laboratory, the experiment was performed on mice, researchers inhibited the IHH protein, which showed promising results.
Kidney function returned back to normal after the scarring got minimised.
However, researchers stressed the need for further studies to find out its results on humans.
