Renal Diseases

The Renal Division at Washington University is part of the Department of Internal Medicine and was created as a separate entity in 1956. Equipment as well as support personnel is available for the execution of sophisticated research. Internationally recognized senior faculty members provide a rich environment for renal clinical investigation. The free flow of ideas and expertise across divisional and departmental boundaries is a hallmark of the Medical Center and encourages collaboration between clinical and basic scientists.

News Stories & Tip Sheets:

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Avoiding vascular calcification Readily available treatment could help prevent heart disease in kidney patients April 17, 2008 -- The estimated 19 million Americans living with chronic kidney disease (CKD) face a high risk of death from cardiovascular disease, usually related to high levels of blood phosphate. Now researchers at the School of Medicine have demonstrated that high blood phosphate directly stimulates calcification of blood vessels and that phosphate-binding drugs can decrease vascular calcification.

Filtering the filter Breakdown of kidney's ability to clean its own filters likely causes disease Jan. 29, 2008 -- With a key protein disabled, a pair of kidney filtering units can't keep antibodies (shown in red) from building up in the filter. Download The kidney actively cleans its most selective filter to keep it from clogging with blood proteins, scientists from the School of Medicine reveal in a new study. Researchers showed that breakdown of this self-cleaning feature can make kidneys more vulnerable to dysfunction and disease.

Inching closer to a cure Cross-species transplant in rhesus macaques is step toward diabetes cure for humans Oct. 18, 2007 -- Hammerman Download In a new study with an eye on curing diabetes, senior investigator Marc Hammerman and a group of WUSM scientists successfully transplanted embryonic pig pancreatic cells destined to produce insulin into diabetic macaque monkeys - all without the need for risky immune suppression drugs that prevent rejection. The transplanted cells, known as primordia, are in the earliest stages of developing into pancreatic tissues. Within several weeks of the transplants, the cells became engrafted, or established, within the three rhesus macaque monkeys that received them. The cells also released pig insulin in response to rising blood glucose levels, as would be expected in healthy animals and humans.

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Faculty Experts:

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Marc Hammerman Chromalloy Professor of Renal Diseases in Medicine Hammerman is a leader in the emerging field of organogenesis, which focuses on growing organs from stem cells and other embryonic cell clusters known as organ primordia. Unlike stem cells, which can become virtually any cell type, primordia are locked into becoming a particular cell type or one of ... Expertise: Organogenesis, organ, transplant, kidney, pancreas, diabetes, kidney failure, … Media assistance: (314) 286-0122 / purdym@wustl.edu

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Related News Clips:

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Cutting Phosphate May Protect Kidney Patients From Heart Trouble The Washington Post and 11 others April 24, 2008 -- Readily available phosphate-binding drugs could help prevent heart disease in people with chronic kidney disease, a new study in the the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology finds. WUSTL researchers led by pediatric nephrology specialist Keith Hruska and pediatrics instructor Suresh Mathew comment.

Study Urges Caution on Anemia Drug Use Associated Press Online and 55 others April 18, 2007 -- A flawed Medicare payment plan encourages aggressive use of a risky and costly anti-anemia drug on many kidney dialysis patients, say researchers who warn the system should be changed. In an accompanying editorial in JAMA, WUSTL renal expert Daniel Coyne said kidney doctors who work with dialysis centers may not know they are "making dubious dosing decisions" because they sign multipage standing orders and turn over anemia management to chain employees.

Doctors' Ties to Drug Makers Are Put on Close View The New York Times and 3 others March 21, 2007 -- A 2002 survey found that more than 80 percent of the doctors on panels that write clinical practice guidelines had financial ties to drug makers. This article looks at the serious conflict of interest problem that arises when drug companies pay for drug research. WUSTL professor and kidney specialist Daniel Coyne recently wrote an editorial in an influential journal decrying guidelines written last year by the kidney foundation that encourage doctors to use more of Amgen's drugs to treat anemia in kidney patients despite studies showing that increased use led to more deaths.

Study finds link between kidney damage, cardiac problems Associated Press and 34 others April 1, 2005 -- People with kidney damage are prone to a chain reaction that increases their risk of heart problems, the leading cause of death among kidney patients. WUSTL researchers, led by senior investigator and nephrology professor Keith Hruska, hope these findings, which will appear in the April issue of the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, will create new possibilities for treating kidney patients suffering from heart-related problems.

Pig cells show promise for diabetics Atlanta Journal-Constitution and 13 others April 26, 2004 -- Transplants of pig cells have cured diabetes in rats without the need for immunosuppressive drugs. The finding was a complete surprise to the researchers, who have yet to explain it. Marc Hammerman, the Chromalloy Professor of Renal Diseases in Medicine at the School of Medicine, transplanted cells taken from the developing pancreas in pig embryos into rats whose insulin-producing pancreatic cells had been destroyed. Half the rats were given immunosuppressants; half were not. Even without drugs, the pig cells survived for more than 40 weeks. "From a practical point of view, if it works, it doesn't matter why," said Hammerman.