Autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease is one of the most common inherited human disorders and is the third leading cause of end stage renal disease. The cost associated with polycystic kidney disease is escalated by extra-renal complications such as hypertension, cystic liver disease and intracranial aneurysms. Therefore any therapy that could slow the progression of this disease would be of great benefit. Heteroarotinoids are a new class of drugs related to retinoic acid that work through a different mechanism. In polycystic kidney disease 3-D cultures treated with heteroarotinoids, cyst formation could be completely eliminated. Both heteroarotinoids induced formation of several branched tubular structures characteristic of a differentiated phenotype in kidney tissue. These results indicate that heteroarotinoids inhibit cyst formation in a 3-D culture model of polycystic kidney disease.

Patents
Please contact the IPMO office for patent information