Cell therapy, advanced materials, and new approaches to acute kidney injury

Acute renal failure (ARF) is a common clinical syndrome characterized by an abrupt deterioration in kidney function, resulting in abnormalities in volume-regulatory, metabolic-regulatory, excretory, and endocrine functions. Despite decades of improvements in the provision of intensive care, and specifically in the provision of renal replacement therapy, the morbidity and mortality associated with acute kidney injury (AKI) remain extremely high. This article highlights novel cell therapies, advanced materials, and approaches to AKI with the aim of illuminating a potential path for future basic, translational, and clinical research using these novel modalities.