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New blood test from Cologne: revolutionizing early detection of kidney diseases!
A research team at the University Hospital of Cologne is developing a blood test to predict kidney disease, published in Nature.
New blood test from Cologne: revolutionizing early detection of kidney diseases!
The University Hospital of Cologne has made significant progress in the diagnosis of kidney diseases. An interdisciplinary research team has developed an innovative blood test to improve the prognosis of autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD). This exciting study was published in the renowned journal Nature Communications published and entitled “Developing serum proteomics based prediction models of disease progression in ADPKD”.
By analyzing over 1,000 blood samples from one of the largest ADPKD cohorts worldwide, 29 proteins were identified that correlate with disease progression. These biomarkers are associated with important immunological processes and metabolism. Univ.-Prof. Dr. Roman-Ulrich Müller and Dr. Philipp Antczak from the Center for Molecular Medicine Cologne (CMMC) lead the project, which enables individualized risk assessment for ADPKD patients and exceeds the accuracy of previous prognostic tools.
Primary study objective
One goal of the study is to examine the influence of existing therapies on the identified protein patterns. The further development of this method into a clinically usable test procedure is at the top of the team's agenda. Financial support comes from, among others, the Jörg Bernards Foundation and the German Research Foundation (DFG) as part of the Cluster of Excellence for Aging Research (CECAD) at the University of Cologne.
An additional aspect of the study concerns the strict guidelines that were followed during the research. Each participant provided written informed consent, and the study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of the University of Cologne. The ADPKD cohort consists of patients registered since 2015 and includes comprehensive clinical and laboratory data.
ADPKD and its challenges
Autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease is one of the most common genetic diseases of the kidneys. Those affected often experience large kidneys with symptoms ranging from chronic pain to blood in the urine to more frequent kidney stones. It is estimated that 60 to 70% of patients develop hypertension, while long-term consequences such as renal insufficiency and eventual kidney failure are not uncommon Health Lexicon describes.
The development of this blood test brings hope. Sample analysis was carried out using mass spectrometry, with 398 protein groups identified in the screening proteome. This could significantly improve patients' quality of life by enabling early interventions.
With this novel method, the team at the University Hospital of Cologne shows a good knack for the challenges of kidney research and sets new standards for the medical care of ADPKD patients.