Researchers at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine have discovered how low-oxygen conditions can worsen chronic kidney disease (CKD). The key player is a protein called hypoxia-inducible-factor (HIF-1) that, as its name suggests, is active when the kidney does not get enough oxygen, a condition known as hypoxia.
CKD afflicts 20 million Americans who have hypertension, atherosclerosis, diabetes, and other conditions. The kidney has less oxygen reserves than other organs to start, and CKD is associated with less capillary blood flow, reducing oxygenation even further. As CKD progresses, kidneys become full of fibrous tissue and cannot filter wastes out of blood or regulate body salt. Eventually kidney dialysis, a form of renal replacement therapy, may be needed to carry out these processes. Ultimately, the clinical goal is to optimize treatment to halt or delay the progression of CKD by better understanding its molecular underpinnings.
Ian: maybe I'm simple.. but if oxygen levels in tissue depend on oxygenated blood, doesn't that mean that their blood is too acidic? After all, acidic blood holds far, far less oxygen that alkaline balanced blood. Just asking.
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