A cure for kidney disease could be in the pipeline after scientists discovered the killer disease can be triggered by tiny 'shuttles'.

[sixoclock]

Could THIS lead to a cure for deadly kidney disease? Scientists discover it can be triggered by microscopic 'shuttles'

• The microscopic exosomes are approximately 1,000 times thinner than hair
• The tiny vesicles transport a damaging enzyme that leads to kidney fibrosis
• This is the main cause of kidney disease - which strikes 2.6 million in the UK
• There is no cure and thousands of patients rely on life-saving dialysis

 

 

 

 

A cure for kidney disease could be in the pipeline after scientists discovered the killer disease can be triggered by tiny 'shuttles'.

 

The microscopic exosomes - 1,000 times thinner than hair - transport a damaging enzyme that leads to fibrosis of the kidney.

 

Fibrosis, or kidney scarring, is the primary cause of kidney disease - which strikes roughly 2.6 million people in the UK. 

 

There is currently no cure and patients whose organs go on to fail, the end-stage of the disease, need dialysis or a transplant to survive.

 

The new findings, led by Nottingham Trent University researchers, offer hope of a way of stopping the disease in its tracks.

 

Scientists hope they will be able to block the microscopic vessels, which are 100 nanometers wide and transmit transglutaminase-2 (TG2).

 

Dr Elisabetta Verderio, lead author, told MailOnline: 'This is a major marker for kidney disease development.

 

'To play a role in fibrosis, TG2 needs to get to the right location where fibrosis forms, outside the cells. We know that TG2 doesn't travel alone.

 

'We now need to look at how we can target these tiny vesicles as a means of controlling, or interrupting, fibrosis before serious problems occur.

 

'It is also possible that we could look at TG2 in these vesicles as a way of diagnosing the disease earlier. The more we know, the more avenues we have to intervene.'

 

Kidney disease costs the NHS £1.5 billion each year - but charities warn this could soar because it is becoming increasingly common.  

 

Staggering figures show the number of people dying from kidney disease have roared by 31 per cent in the space of a decade.  

 

The organs completely fail in around one in 50 patients, according to the NHS. This is when the sufferer can be listed for a transplant.

 

Others are given dialysis - a procedure that removes waste products and excess fluids from the blood when the kidneys stop functioning properly.

 

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[rasbridge]

That was a very interesting article.  I greatly enjoy reading articles like this.