The Epidermal Growth Factor Receptor: A Potential Therapeutic Target in Chronic Kidney Disease

Abstract

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a clinical syndrome characterized by a gradual loss
of kidney function that persists for >3 months with health implications and affects nearly 500
million people worldwide. Diabetes and hypertension are the 2 most common causes of CKD,
which account for up to two-thirds of the cases.1-3 Accumulating evidence has shown that hyperuricemia is tightly associated with the pathogenesis of CKD.1-4 Hyperuricemic nephropathy is
a condition characterized by glomerular hypertension, arteriolosclerosis, and tubule interstitial
fibrosis. Prior studies demonstrate that decreasing uric acid levels delays the development of
CKD and slows its progression and uric acid is an independent predictor of future development
of CKD.1-4 The mechanistic processes by which hyperuricemia induces chronic renal injury
involve deposition of uric acid crystals in the collecting duct of the kidney, renal angiotension
system activation, oxidative stress, tubular epithelial cell transition and inflammation.4-7