title: The role of uric acid in kidney fibrosis: experimental evidences for the causal relationship.
abstract: Hyperuricemia is a common finding in chronic kidney disease due to decreased uric acid clearance. The role of uric acid as a risk factor for chronic kidney disease has been largely debated, and recent studies suggested a role of uric acid in the causation and progression of kidney fibrosis, a final common pathway in chronic kidney disease. Uric acid and xanthine oxidase may contribute to kidney fibrosis mainly by inducing inflammation, endothelial dysfunction, oxidative stress, and activation of the renin-angiotensin system. Besides, hyperuricemia induces alterations in renal hemodynamics via afferent arteriolopathy and contributes to the onset and progression of kidney fibrosis. Xanthine oxidase inhibitors may prevent kidney damage via lowering uric acid and/or inhibiting xanthine oxidase. However, there is still no sufficient evidence from interventional clinical researches supporting the causal relationship between uric acid and kidney fibrosis. The effect and role of xanthine oxidase inhibitors in preventing kidney fibrosis and chronic kidney disease progression must be further explored by performing future large scale clinical trials.
authors.affiliation: Division of Nephrology, Department of Internal Medicine, Pusan National University School of Medicine, Yangsan 626-770, Republic of Korea ; Research Institute for Convergence of Biomedical Science and Technology, Pusan National University Yangsan Hospital, Yangsan 626-770, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Il Young
authors.initials: IY
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Division of Nephrology, Department of Internal Medicine, Pusan National University School of Medicine, Yangsan 626-770, Republic of Korea ; Research Institute for Convergence of Biomedical Science and Technology, Pusan National University Yangsan Hospital, Yangsan 626-770, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Dong Won
authors.initials: DW
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Division of Nephrology, Department of Internal Medicine, Pusan National University School of Medicine, Yangsan 626-770, Republic of Korea ; Research Institute for Convergence of Biomedical Science and Technology, Pusan National University Yangsan Hospital, Yangsan 626-770, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Soo Bong
authors.identifier: 0000-0002-3388-7993
authors.initials: SB
authors.lastname: Lee
authors.affiliation: Division of Nephrology, Department of Internal Medicine, Pusan National University School of Medicine, Yangsan 626-770, Republic of Korea ; Medical Research Institute, Pusan National University Hospital, Busan 602-739, Republic of Korea.
authors.forename: Ihm Soo
authors.initials: IS
authors.lastname: Kwak
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D004195:Disease Models, Animal; D005355:Fibrosis / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology; D006801:Humans; D007249:Inflammation; D051436:Renal Insufficiency, Chronic / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology / Q000628:therapy; D014527:Uric Acid / Q000378:metabolism*; D014969:Xanthine Oxidase / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D014527:Uric Acid; D014969:Xanthine Oxidase