Regenerative Nephrology

Progression of chronic diseases in general and chronic kidney disease in particular has been traditionally viewed in the light of various contributors to development of glomerulosclerosis and tubulointerstitial scarring culminating in renal fibrosis. Indeed, this dogma prevailed for decades underscoring experimental attempts to halt fibrotic processes. Breakthrough investigations of the past few years on stem/progenitor cell involvement in organ regeneration caused a conceptual shift in tackling the mechanisms of nephrosclerosis. It has become clear that the rate of progression of chronic kidney disease is the net sum of the opposing trends: degenerative fibrotic processes and regenerative repair mechanisms. The latter part of this equation has been by and large ignored for years and only recently attracted investigative attention. This book revisits the problem of kidney disease by focusing on regenerative mechanisms in renal repair and on the ways these regenerative processes can become subverted by an intrinsic disease process eventuating in its progression. Cutting-edge investigations are summarized by the most experienced international team of experts. CONTENTS Introduction: Fibrosis as a common pathway to organ failure - the battlefield of regenerative nephrology PHYLOGENY AND ONTOGENY OF TISSUE REGENERATION Glomerulogenesis and de novo nephrogenesis - evolutionary approach (Wakamatsu Y, Nagoya, Japan Models of regeneration: sub-scleral transplantation; xenoembryonic model; abdominal transplantation (M Hammerman, St Louis) Using Genetic Mouse Models to study Kidney Regeneration (JS Duffield, Boston)   MEDIATORS OF REGENERATION   Lipid mediators of regeneration (lipoxins, resolvins) - (C Serhan, Boston) Tissue protection and regeneration aided by erythropoietin and erythropoietin-derived peptides (D Fliser, Germany) Mast cells in kidney regeneration (U Blank, Paris) Role of macrophages in regeneration (V Lee and D Harris, Australia) T-cells contribution to regenerative processes (H Raab, Baltimore)   STEM CELLS IN REGENERATIVE PROCESSES   MSC and reparative processes (B Humphreys and J Bonventre, Boston) EPC and reparative processes (Ton Rabelink, Netherlands and MSG) The renal side population: stem cells or humoral mediators or repair? (M Little, Australia) Very small embryonic-like stem cells and reparative processes (M Ratajczak, Louisville) Induced pluripotent stem cells and reparative processes (S Yamanaka, Kyoto) Methods of isolation and culture of stem cells (Nardi, Brazil)   STEM CELLS - FROM THE NICHE TO REPAIR   Stem cell niches in the kidney (P Romagnani, Florence, Italy) Creation of artificial niches (MS Goligorsky, B Ratliff, P Brudnicki, T Ghaly and G Prestwich, Salt Lake City, UT) Imaging of transplanted and native stem cells (L Lerman, Rochester, Minn) Mechanisms of stem cell-induced repair: secretory mediators, substitution of damaged cells, cell-cell fusion (P Igarashi and F Lin, Dallas) Stem cell repair of acute kidney injury (R Poulsom, London, UK)   CAUSES OF REGENERATIVE FAILURE   Stem cell injury and premature senescence (J Chen and MSG, New York) Failure of SDF-1/CXCR4 axis: sepsis and inflammatory diseases (S Rafii, NY) Regeneration and Aging (G Pickering, London, Canada) Preconditioning strategies to improve bone marrow-mesenchymal stem cell engraftment and function (G Remuzzi and M Morigi, Bergamo)   EMERGING CLINICAL ASPECTS OF STEM CELL THERAPY   Treatment of AKI with allogeneic MSC: preclinical and initial clinical data (C. Westenfelder, Salt Lake City) Clinical trials and complications of SC therapy (M Verhaar, The Nethrlands) Safety of SC therapy and maldifferentiation of stem cells (J Floege and Uta Kunter) Bioengineered Kidney (V Mironov, Charleston, SC) Tissue engineering in urology (A Atala, Winston-Salem, NC) Ethical issues in SC therapy (D Landry, New York) Stem cell banks including the sources of stem cells (adipose tissue, skeletal muscle, umbilical cord blood, BM, germ cells (P Solves, Spain)