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Apitherapy for drug-induced kidney disease: a narrative review on its mechanisms
Andrés Jagua-Gualdrón1,2,3, Nicolai Andrés García-Reyes1,2, Holman Leonardo Africano-Lopez4
1National University of Colombia, Bogotá D.C., Colombia.
Introduction:
The use of medications for the treatment of various diseases often results in kidney damage. Apitherapy is a natural therapeutic tool with potential utility for this purpose. This narrative review analyzes and summarizes the scientific evidence on the use of apitherapy in drug-induced kidney disease.
Content:
This review summarizes and analyzes recent advances in drug-induced kidney disease and explores, based on the available scientific evidence, how apitherapy can modify these mechanisms and be utilized for prevention and treatment.
Summary:
Apitherapy (the complementary and integrative use of beehive products) is a potentially useful therapeutic system for the treatment of various diseases. This review examines the preclinical and clinical evidence available regarding its potential use in drug-induced kidney disease.
Outlook:
Apitherapy has effects on various pathophysiological mechanisms of drug-induced kidney disease, including oxidative stress, inflammation, decreased renal blood flow, glomerular damage, increased membrane permeability, activity of the renin-angiotensin-aldosterone axis, mitochondrial dysfunction, and apoptosis. Further studies in humans are needed to evaluate its efficacy in the clinical setting, but the available evidence is promising.
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