Kidney development at a glance: metabolic regulation of renal progenitor cells

The aberrant regulation of renal progenitor cells during kidney development leads to congenital kidney anomalies and dysplasia. Recently, significant progress has been made in understanding the metabolic needs of renal progenitor cells during mammalian kidney development, with evidence indicating that multiple metabolic pathways play essential roles in determining the cell fates of distinct renal progenitor populations. This review summarizes recent findings and explores the prospects of integrating this novel information into current diagnostic and treatment strategies for renal diseases. Reciprocal interactions between various embryonic kidney progenitor populations establish the foundation for normal kidney organogenesis, with the three principal kidney structures-the nephrons, the collecting duct network, and the stroma-being generated by nephron progenitor cells, ureteric bud/collecting duct progenitor cells, and interstitial progenitor cells. While energy metabolism is well recognized for its importance in organism development, physiological function regulation, and responses to environmental stimuli, research has primarily focused on nephron progenitor metabolism, highlighting its role in maintaining self-renewal. In contrast, studies on the metabolic requirements of ureteric bud/collecting duct and stromal progenitors remain limited. Given the importance of interactions between progenitor populations during kidney development, further research into the metabolic regulation of self-renewal and differentiation in ureteric bud and stromal progenitor cells will be critical.