Unexpected Hope for Chronic Kidney Disease: Constipation Medication Shows Promise
Chronic kidney diseaseโ (CKD) is aโ global โhealth challenge, often leading to dialysis for survival. Currently, there are no approved medications to restore kidney function. However, a research team led by Professor Takaaki Abe at Tohoku University Graduateโค School of Medicine has discovered a surprising potential treatment by repurposing a common constipation medication, lubiprostone. This marks the first evidence that lubiprostone can slow the decline of kidney function in individualsโ with โขCKD.
The research stemmed from the observation that constipation frequently occurs alongside CKD. โProfessor Abe โexplains, “Constipation โdisrupts the gut microbiome, which negatively impacts kidney function. We hypothesized that improving gut health by treating constipation โcould, in turn, โคimprove โคkidney health.”
Lubiprostone Slows Kidney Function Decline in Clinical Trial
A Phase II clinical trial (LUBI-CKD TRIAL) conducted across nine Japanese medical facilities tested this hypothesis. 150 participants with moderate CKD were enrolled โขand monitored to assess lubiprostone’s effect on โขkidney โคhealth. Those receiving โ8 ยตg โor 16 ยตgโ of โฃlubiprostone experienced a slower rate ofโ kidney function decline compared to the placebo group,as measured byโ changes in estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) โ- a key indicator of kidney performance.
Further investigation revealed how lubiprostone โฃexerts this protective effect. The drug was found to increase the production of spermidine, a compound that boosts mitochondrial activity โby fostering the growth of beneficial gut bacteria. This improved mitochondrial function โคthen provided a renoprotective effect, limiting further kidney โdamage.
Futureโ directions: Personalized CKD Treatment
The team is now planning โคa larger Phase 3 clinical โtrial to confirm these findings. They also aim to โidentify biomarkers that can predict which patients will respond โฃbest to โฃlubiprostone.Ultimately,their goal is โto develop personalized treatment strategies for โCKD,a significant departure from current therapies focused primarily โon reducing uremic toxins.
These findings โคsuggest โขthat certain laxatives mayโฃ offer โขa new avenue for slowing the progression โof kidney โคdisease.This research โalso opens โpossibilities for developing treatmentsโข for other conditions linked to โฃmitochondrial dysfunction. The study’s detailsโ were published inโ Science Advances.