Marrow Stem Cells Reverse Kidney Disease

Stem cells derived from bone marrow appear to reverse genetic kidney disease, researchers said Monday.

Scientists at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center said they successfully used stem cells to regenerate damaged renal cells in an animal model of a genetic kidney disorder known as Alport syndrome.

In particular, the stem cells repaired special structural cells that serve as scaffolding in the kidneys, which are defective in patients with Alport syndrome.

In normal kidneys, a specialized form of extracellular matrix known as the glomerular basement membrane (GBM), composed primarily of type IV collagen, is the key component of the blood filtration apparatus, said Raghu Kalluri, chief of the division of matrix biology at BIDMC and associate professor of medicine at Harvard Medical School.

(Alport syndrome) is one of 31 human diseases that occur because of genetic defects in the body’s extracellular matrix and basement membrane proteins, said Kalluri, the study’s lead author.

Alport syndrome, which usually affects children, is the second most common genetic cause of kidney failure and affects the kidneys’ filtration system.

The disorder usually results in end-stage renal disease in the patient’s teens, 20s or 30s, the researchers said.

The study’s results appear online in this week’s Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.