Apart from its assistance in controlling sensitivity of the organism towards insulin, the anti-aging hormone Klotho appears more beneficial in the medical world. A latest research undertaken by the UT Southwestern Medical Center claims that low Klotho hormone levels serve as an early warning sign for chronic kidney disease (CKD) and its fatal cardiovascular complications. The research findings can supposedly open doors to novel methods for suppressing the progression of CKD and averting the dire consequences linked with the disease.
The investigation triggered on mice pointed out that when Klotho hormone levels are restored, soft-tissue calcification is improved. Soft-tissue calcification is known as a common and serious side effect of CKD. The Klotho protein apparently falls hard and fast in CKD patients. This protein produced by the kidneys may aid in tackling a major side-effect associated with the disease. Mice with CKD allegedly revealed low levels of Klotho in their kidneys, blood and urine, pointing out that CKD is a state of systemic Klotho deficiency.
Researchers also tested urine from 53 human participants that encompassed 40 CKD patients. All the patients possibly had low levels of Klotho. Mice were genetically engineered to produce inadequate levels of the protein, so they had decreased Klotho levels. When the levels of the protein were restored, the rodents with CKD reportedly displayed better renal function and blood chemistry along with declined vascular calcification. However, mice with CKD that were genetically engineered to have low levels of Klotho registered worse kidney function and severe calcification.
“It can be a vicious cycle, where CKD begets low Klotho and low Klotho accelerates CKD,†said Dr. Orson Moe, director of the Charles and Jane Pak Center for Mineral Metabolism and Clinical Research at UT Southwestern and the senior investigator. “Chronic kidney disease appears to go hand-in-hand with chronic Klotho deficiency. Animal studies have shown that a dangerous consequence of inadequate Klotho is soft-tissue calcification, which can interfere with normal organ function.â€
It was suggested that Klotho diminishes vascular calcification by boosting the urine’s phosphate excretions and preserving kidney fluid filtration. Klotho also seems to inhibit vascular smooth-muscle phosphate uptake and calcification. Experts believe that CKD is a state of Klotho deficiency and that the protein is an early marker of the ailment. It is predicted that Klotho replacement therapy can benefit CKD patients in not only avoiding, but also reversing the disease complications.
The research was published online in the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology.