Circulating and Urinary CCL20 in Human Kidney Disease.

Area of Science:

• Nephrology
• Immunology
• Biochemistry

Background:

• CC motif chemokine ligand 20 (CCL20) and its receptor CCR6 are implicated in kidney inflammation.
• Clinical data on CCL20 in diabetic kidney disease (DKD) and autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD) are limited.

Purpose of the Study:

• To analyze CCL20 levels in plasma and urine of DKD and ADPKD patients.
• To investigate the association of CCL20 with baseline characteristics and long-term clinical outcomes.
• To identify the source of CCL20 within the kidney.

Main Methods:

• Analysis of plasma and urinary CCL20 levels in 98 DKD and 85 ADPKD patients.
• Utilized single-cell kidney transcriptomics to identify CCL20-expressing cells.
• Long-term follow-up (median 4.9 years for DKD, 7.1 years for ADPKD) to assess clinical outcomes.

Main Results:

• Plasma CCL20 was significantly higher in DKD and ADPKD patients compared to a reference group.
• Urinary CCL20 was detectable in DKD patients but not in the reference group.
• In DKD, higher CCL20 correlated with earlier stages of CKD and higher albuminuria.
• In ADPKD, elevated CCL20 was associated with lower eGFR, increased albuminuria, and larger kidney size, but not with disease progression or mortality.

Conclusions:

• CCL20 is upregulated in biological fluids and produced locally within the kidney in CKD.
• CCL20 may serve as a potential biomarker for risk stratification in kidney diseases.
• Further research is warranted to fully elucidate the role and clinical utility of CCL20 in CKD.