Fifty years of Balkan endemic nephropathy: daunting questions, elusive answers.
Balkan endemic nephropathy (BEN) has remained a geographically constant endemic for 50 years. Despite extensive research, its etiology remains unknown. In the current issue, in a study in one of the earliest sites where the endemic was first recognized, Dimitrov et al. confirm the persistance of the endemic into a new generation and also identify a maternal link in the pathogenesis of BEN. This intriguing finding needs to be confirmed in other endemic areas.
Section of Nephrology, Tulane University Medical School, New Orleans, Louisiana 70112, USA. vbatuma@tulane.edu
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D000328:Adult; D000368:Aged; D001449:Balkan Nephropathy / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000209:etiology* / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology; D001609:Beta-Globulins / Q000032:analysis; D002031:Bulgaria / Q000453:epidemiology; D003031:Coal / Q000633:toxicity; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D015994:Incidence; D007668:Kidney / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D007674:Kidney Diseases / Q000503:physiopathology; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011247:Pregnancy; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects; D011507:Proteinuria / Q000503:physiopathology
D001609:Beta-Globulins; D003031:Coal