Fresh Human Kidney Tissue: Exploring biomarkers and intervention targets in chronic kidney disease (FRIGG)

Using fresh, live human kidney slices (HKS) forced into archetypical CKD disease processes, fibrosis and inflammation, the team aims to 1) Profile downstream molecular and cellular changes involved in CKD development and progression and thus, suggest novel targets, 2) Evaluate translatability between the HKS CKD model and a mouse CKD model and 3) Explore biomarkers to detect CKD earlier and predict disease progression.

Live HKS in combination with the most advanced OMICs platforms will provide unprecedented detail into critical pathophysiological processes that drive CKD and generate an openly-accessible platform, which can be used to classify human CKD-associated pathways. Moreover, the team will provide insight into cross-species translatability between human and mouse. Success criteria/output: Increased knowledge of human renal physiology and of the early stages of human CKD as well as identification of potential CKD biomarkers and targets.

The success criteria is Increased knowledge of human renal physiology and of the early stages of human CKD as well as identification of potential CKD biomarkers and targets.

Relevance to Industry: CKD is a central focus area for numerous pharmaceutical companies who will gain fundamental knowledge of human renal physiology as well as mechanisms driving early CKD development and progression and insights into the translatability between HKS and mouse KS as well as identification and classification of pathways that drive CKD across the different species. This project will be of interest to renal physiologists, clinicians and companies working directly or
indirectly with CKD. Openness:

FRIGG will not be possible in a closed, contracted setting. Multiple OMIC datasets will be generated and deposited in relevant databases making the data rapidly available to both interested academia and companies.

Participants:

AU: Rikke Nørregaard and Lene N. Nejsum, Department of Clinical Medicine,
AU: Lin Lin, Department of Biomedicine,
AU: Rick Mutsaers, Department of Clinical Medicine
AU: Jørgen Kjems, iNANO/Department of Molecular Biology and Genetics
AU: Gitte Albinus Pedersen, Department of Clinical Medicine
AU: Camilla Merrild, Department of Clinical Medicine
Novo Nordisk A/S: Peter Helding Kvist and Agnès Bènardeau
AstraZeneca AB: Pernille Lærkegaard Hansen and Timo Haschler
Nordic Bioscience A/S: Federica Genovese and Daniel Guldager Kring Rasmussen