Can Kidneys Repair Themselves? Yes, Study Says

Kidney failure can be fatal, which makes us wonder if there are ways that this organ can repair itself in case it gets damaged. Fortunately, yes, kidneys can heal independently, according to a study.

Can Kidneys Repair Themselves?

Overturning decades of conventional wisdom that such regeneration didn't occur, researchers at the Stanford Institute for Stem Cell Biology and Regenerative Medicine and the Sackler School of Medicine in Israel have demonstrated how the kidneys constantly grow and have an unexpected capacity to regenerate themselves. It also paves the potential for novel kidney repair and even growth techniques.

The lead author of the work and a postdoctoral researcher at the institute, Yuval Rinkevich, Ph.D., noted that these are actual results that have immediate consequences for kidney disease and kidney regeneration.

It has long been believed that kidney cell division was minimal once the kidney was fully developed. However, their research revealed that the kidneys continuously regenerate and heal themselves.

The study shows that the kidney is not a static organ, according to senior author Benjamin Dekel, MD, Ph.D., who is also the director of the Pediatric Stem Cell Research Institute at the Sheba Medical Center in Israel and an associate professor of pediatrics at Sackler. Amazingly, the kidney continually renews itself and produces specific kidney cells.

Irving Weissman, MD, professor of pathology and developmental biology and head of the Stanford Center, is also a co-author of the study.

The experiment conducted on mice also demonstrates how the kidney can repair. Different kidney segments have significantly more specialized stem cells that give rise to new cells within each type of kidney tissue instead of a single type of stem cell that can replace any lost or injured kidney tissue.

Dekel compared it to a tree with branches where each branch manages its growth instead of depending on the trunk.

However, they noted that such advancements are not yet foreseeable though. It would be challenging to grow an entire kidney in the lab because they would need to coordinate the actions of numerous different precursor cell types using precisely the proper stimuli, according to Dekel. It can't be rebuilt from a single type of stem cell like the immune system and blood can.

The study findings were published in Cell Reports on May 15, 2014.

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Reversing Kidney Damage Naturally Is Possible

Early detection is the key to correcting kidney disease. Your kidneys can start to mend themselves if the problem is identified and treated early enough, according to Durham Nephrology. Your lifestyle will probably need to change as part of your kidney damage treatment, and surgery may also be necessary.

There are frequently few to no obvious signs in the early stages of renal failure. When performing tests or exams for another health issue, your doctor will often discover that you are experiencing the early stages of renal failure.

Common symptoms of kidney failure include less urinal than normal, water weight accumulation resulting in the swelling of legs, feet, and ankles, tiredness, itching, joint pain, twitching muscles, rash, fever, stomach or back pain, and feeling like you want to vomit.