N00-N99 Diseases of the genitourinary system
One study in Diseases of the genitourinary system is accessible to registered UDBN website users.
UDBN partners:
Prof Andy Rees (University of Aberdeen)
MRC / Kidney Research UK NATIONAL DNA BANK FOR GLOMERULONEPHRITIS
Population based screening indicates that up to 8% of the population have chronic kidney disease that has the capacity to progress to established kidney failure but does so in a relatively small proportion of cases. Nonetheless roughly 120 people per million population begin treatment for established kidney failure each year which means that 50,000 people will be receiving renal replacement therapy in the UK within the next five years. Current treatments for renal failure by dialysis imposes are very demanding both physically and emotionally and also very costly. Consequently, there is an urgent need to for better treatments for the diseases that cause kidney failure, and glomerulonephritis is numerically one of the most important of these, accounting for up to 40% of young and middle aged patients requiring dialysis.
Glomerulonephritis is not a single entity but the name given to a group of immune-mediated kidney diseases in which injury is focussed primarily on the glomerulus. The pathogenesis of these disorders is incompletely understood and current treatments are relatively unsatisfactory. Greater knowledge of pathogenesis should identify new therapeutic targets and provide the foundations for better treatment. The National DNA Bank for Glomerulonephritis inaugurated in 2001 with funding from both the MRC and Kidney Research UK. The objective was to collect and archive DNA together with EBV transformed cell lines, serum and clinical data from a sufficiently large cohort of patients to enable suitably empowered genetic studies to be performed on five of the most common types of glomerulonephritis: - IgA nephropathy, membranous nephropathy, focal necrotising glomerulonephritis (FNGN), lupus nephropathy and minimal change nephritic syndrome. From the outset, it was planned to be a key strategic resource to facilitate genetic research designed to identify novel therapeutic targets for these devastating diseases.
The project has been outstandingly successful and DNA from over 2,500 probands and controls has been banked. Although the bank is probably the largest collection of DNA from patients with glomerular disease in the world, it is still relatively small compared to collections of DNA from more common diseases such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes and multiple sclerosis. Consequently, we are actively recruiting new patients.
To access individual data and samples, first register.
