Kidneys play essential roles in filtering blood and keeping the body healthy. In the Kidney Regeneration Group, we are creating miniature kidneys from stem cells to improve our understanding of kidney diseases and develop new treatments.
Impact
With limited treatment options, chronic kidney disease affects more than 800 million people globally and is a leading cause of death worldwide. We are creating miniature kidneys from stem cells to increase our understanding of kidney disease, screen drugs, and improve kidney function in patients.
reNEW research
The glomerulus is the filtration unit of the kidney that filters blood to remove waste and re-absorb useful substances. Our group has developed different methods to generate glomeruli within miniature kidneys using stem cells. This allows us to create mini kidney models using a patient’s own stem cells in order to better understand their disease and discover new drug treatments.
Image description
A glomerulus (green) connected to tubules (magenta) inside a stem-cell derived mini kidney. By coincidence, the arrangement of the structures looks like a kidney with an ureter attached.
Credits
Rachel Lam, Melissa Little’s Lab, MCRI