Understanding the life cycle of a disease and how it affects the body is vital to treating a patient with that disease effectively. Researchers at the University of Washington School of Medicine recently studied how sugar may affect the development and progression of polycystic kidney disease (PKD). Read about their findings here.*

What is PKD? 

PKD is a progressive genetic disorder that can lead to kidney failure in some people. It occurs when tubules—tiny tubes in the kidneys that return nutrients and fluids to the blood after being filtered—fill up with fluid like water balloons, forming fluid sacs, or cysts. Over time, the cysts crowd out healthy tissue, leading to problems with kidney function. 

Scientists have identified many of the genes that lead to PKD, however more needs to be understood about how the cysts form and what encourages their growth. 

What did the researchers do? 

When studying organs, researchers often use miniature lab-grown organs called organoids. This can pose a problem when studying kidneys since it’s difficult to simulate the continuous passing of fluid through an organoid. 

To overcome this barrier, the researchers combined organoid technology and a tissue chip, a 3-D structure, composed of actual organ cells, that allows for better control of the model’s environment, including the constant movement of fluid through it, similar to a kidney’s environment inside the body.

What did they learn? 

After developing a PKD tissue chip, the researchers exposed it to a combination of:

• Water, 
• Glucose (sugar), 
• Amino acids, and 
• Other nutrients. 

The team found that exposure to this solution caused the cysts to expand and quickly grow larger. They observed that the cysts absorbed the glucose and pulled in water from the fluid passing over them. 

Next, the team took the study a step further and provided glucose to mice with PKD. The mouse cysts also absorbed the glucose and grew larger. “It wasn’t a huge surprise that the cysts could absorb glucose,” said co-author Benjamin Freedman, Ph.D., “but it was surprising that they were dependent on it. It’s a new way of thinking of how these cysts form.”

What does it mean? 

Based on the study results, the scientists believe that adding compounds to block glucose transport and absorption may prevent cyst growth in PKD. Fortunately, compounds to block glucose, called glucose inhibitors, are already being studied and developed for other types of kidney disease. This is a promising way to treat PKD and prevent its progression in those living with the disease.

*Henderson, E. B. (2023, January 6). Researchers develop a new approach to better understand the biology of polycystic kidney disease. News-Medical.net. https://www.news-medical.net/news/20230105/Researchers-develop-a-new-approach-to-better-understand-the-biology-of-polycystic-kidney-disease.aspx