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From premature birth to premature kidney disease: does accelerated aging play a role?

Keia R Sanderson1, Christel Wekon-Kemeni2,3, Jennifer R Charlton4

  • 1Department of Medicine-Nephrology, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA. keia_sanderson@med.unc.edu.

Pediatric Nephrology (Berlin, Germany)
|November 10, 2023
PubMed

Insights

Preterm birth may accelerate biological aging, increasing the risk of chronic kidney disease (CKD). Understanding this link could lead to new therapies for preventing advanced CKD in preterm infants.

Area of Science:

  • Gerontology and Nephrology
  • Developmental Biology and Chronic Disease

Background:

  • Increased fetal viability has shifted focus from survival to long-term health outcomes after preterm birth.
  • Growing evidence links preterm birth to accelerated biological aging and increased risk of chronic diseases.
  • Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is characterized by an advanced biological age exceeding chronological age.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the relationship between premature biological aging and chronic kidney disease (CKD) following preterm birth.
  • To explore potential biological mechanisms linking preterm birth, accelerated aging, and CKD.
  • To identify research gaps and potential therapeutic avenues for preventing advanced CKD.

Main Methods:

  • Literature review summarizing key findings on aging, premature aging after preterm birth, and CKD.
  • Analysis of existing evidence to identify plausible biological mechanisms connecting preterm birth and kidney disease.
  • Synthesis of current research to highlight knowledge gaps in the premature aging paradigm.

Main Results:

  • Preterm birth is associated with an accelerated biological aging phenotype.
  • CKD shares a similar phenotype of advanced biological age.
  • Significant knowledge gaps exist regarding the specific biological links between preterm birth and CKD.

Conclusions:

  • Preterm birth may initiate a process of premature biological aging that increases susceptibility to CKD.
  • Further research is crucial to elucidate the biological mechanisms underlying this premature aging paradigm.
  • Understanding these mechanisms could pave the way for novel therapeutic strategies to prevent advanced CKD in individuals born preterm.

Keywords:
Acute kidney injuryChronic kidney diseaseELGANSInfantsNeonatesPremature agingVery low birth weight

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