A circulating factor in the blood might be part of the cause of the kidney disease focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS), researchers reported.
In two cohorts of FSGS patients, soluble urokinase receptor (suPAR) was significantly elevated compared with controls, according to Jochen Reiser, MD, PhD, of Rush University Medical Center in Chicago, and colleagues.
Moreover, levels of the receptor varied with different treatments and with the odds of remission, Reiser and colleagues reported online in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.
Taken together, the findings "support the role of suPAR in the pathogenesis of FSGS," the researchers argued, and might also be a useful biomarker for disease progression and the effectiveness of therapy.
In addition, Reiser said in a statement, the study suggested that "anti-suPAR therapies may help reduce the burden of FSGS."
And since the disease can recur after a kidney transplant, he added, "suPAR removal may also have relevance in the treatment of post-transplant FSGS."
12/11/2012 : By Michael Smith / Med Page Today.
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