Scientists Watched Kidneys Age in Months and Found a Kidney Protector
Summary
A recent study in Kidney International highlights how SGLT2 inhibitors can mitigate age-related kidney damage in the fast-aging African turquoise killifish, offering insights into potential treatments for kidney health in humans.
Key Insights
What is the African turquoise killifish and why was it used in this study?
The African turquoise killifish (Nothobranchius furzeri) is one of the fastest-aging vertebrates known, completing its entire lifespan in just four to six months, which compresses decades of human-like kidney aging into a short period. This makes it an ideal model for rapidly studying age-related kidney changes and testing interventions like SGLT2 inhibitors, far quicker than in longer-lived animals such as mice.
What are SGLT2 inhibitors and how did they protect the kidneys in this study?
SGLT2 inhibitors are a class of FDA-approved drugs, originally for lowering blood sugar in diabetes, that also protect kidney and heart health. In the study, using dapagliflozin, they preserved capillary networks (preventing vascular rarefaction), maintained filtration barriers, restored youthful gene activity, improved cellular energy production, reduced inflammation, and lowered proteinuria in aging killifish kidneys.