Chronic kidney disease, also known as CKD, is a major health problem that affects millions of people around the world. The kidneys play a very important role in keeping the body healthy.
They remove waste and extra fluid from the blood, help control blood pressure, and keep important minerals balanced. When the kidneys slowly lose their ability to work properly, harmful waste can build up inside the body.
CKD often develops over many years, and many people may not realize they have it in the early stages because symptoms can be mild at first. As the disease becomes worse, people may feel tired, weak, swollen, or short of breath.
In severe cases, the kidneys may fail completely, forcing patients to rely on dialysis treatments several times a week to survive. Kidney transplants can help some patients, but donor organs are limited, and many people spend years waiting for one.
Although doctors can slow down kidney damage using blood pressure medicines, diabetes treatment, and lifestyle changes, there are still no approved drugs that can truly restore kidney function. Because of this, scientists around the world are searching for new ways to protect the kidneys and slow the disease.
Now, researchers from Tohoku University may have found an unexpected new treatment. Their research suggests that a drug commonly used for constipation could also help protect the kidneys in people with chronic kidney disease.
The research team was led by Professor Takaaki Abe. Their findings were published in the scientific journal Science Advances. This is the first study showing that this constipation medicine may help slow the worsening of kidney disease.
The drug is called lubiprostone. Doctors usually prescribe it to help people with constipation by increasing fluid movement in the intestines, making bowel movements easier. Constipation is actually very common in people with chronic kidney disease, especially because many patients take medicines or follow diets that can affect digestion.
Professor Abe and his team became interested in the connection between constipation and kidney disease after learning more about the relationship between the gut and the kidneys. Scientists now understand that the gut contains trillions of bacteria that help keep the body healthy.
When constipation happens, the balance of these bacteria can become unhealthy. This imbalance may create harmful substances that travel through the body and place extra stress on the kidneys.
The researchers wondered if improving gut health could also help protect kidney function. To test this idea, they carried out a clinical trial involving 150 people with moderate chronic kidney disease. The study took place across nine hospitals in Japan.
During the trial, some patients received lubiprostone treatment. The researchers then carefully monitored changes in kidney function over time. They used a common medical test called estimated glomerular filtration rate, or eGFR, which measures how well the kidneys filter waste from the blood.
The results were very encouraging. Patients who took lubiprostone showed a slower decline in kidney function compared with patients who did not receive the same treatment. The effect was even stronger in patients who took higher doses of the drug.
The team also wanted to understand why the medicine seemed to help the kidneys. Their research showed that lubiprostone increased levels of a substance called spermidine inside the body.
Spermidine appears to support healthier bacteria growth inside the gut. This healthy gut environment then improves the function of mitochondria, which are tiny structures inside cells that produce energy. Mitochondria are often described as the energy factories of cells because they help power many important body functions.
When mitochondria become damaged or weak, cells cannot work properly. Scientists believe mitochondrial problems play a role in many diseases, including chronic kidney disease. By improving mitochondrial function, lubiprostone may help protect kidney cells from further injury.
The discovery is important because it suggests that treating chronic kidney disease may require more than simply removing toxins from the blood. It points to a much broader connection between the gut, energy production inside cells, and kidney health.
The researchers now plan to carry out larger studies to confirm their findings. They also hope to identify which patients are most likely to benefit from this treatment so doctors can create more personalized care plans in the future.
This study may also encourage scientists to explore similar treatments for other diseases linked to mitochondrial damage and unhealthy gut bacteria. It highlights how different systems inside the body are closely connected and how treating one problem may unexpectedly improve another.
For people living with chronic kidney disease, the findings bring new hope. A medicine already used for constipation may one day become part of a new strategy to protect kidney function and slow the progression of this serious disease.
If you care about kidney health, please read studies about pesticide linked to chronic kidney disease, and this drug may prevent kidney failure in people with diabetes.
For more health information, please see recent studies about drug duo that may treat kidney failure, and results showing these vegetables may protect against kidney damage.
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