Cardiorenal syndrome: role of protein-bound uremic toxins

Renal impairment is a strong independent risk factor associated with poor prognosis in cardiovascular disease patients. Renal dysfunction is likely contributed by progressive renal structural damage. Accurate detection of kidney injury in a timely manner as well as increased knowledge of the pathophysiology and mechanisms underlying this injury is of great importance in developing therapeutic interventions for combating renal complications at an early stage. Regarding the role of uremic solutes in the pathophysiology of cardiorenal syndrome, a number of further studies are warranted. There may be uremic solutes discovered from proteomics not yet chemically identified or tested for biological activity. Beyond Protein-bound uremic toxins, uremic solutes in other classes (according to the European Uraemic Toxin Work Group classification) may have adverse cardiorenal effects. Although most small water-soluble solutes and middle molecules can be satisfactorily removed by either conventional or newly developed dialysis strategies, targeting uremic toxins with cardiorenal toxicity at predialysis stage of chronic kidney disease may retard or prevent incident dialysis as well as the initiation/progression of cardiorenal syndrome.