Scientists at The Australian National University are a step closer to understanding the rare Hartnup disorder after discovering a surprising link between blood pressure regulation and nutrition that could also help to shed light on intestinal and kidney function.

Massachusetts General Hospital (MGH) researchers have identified a key mechanism underlying proteinuria – excess protein in the urine which signifies a breakdown in the kidney’s filtering process.

A combination of two types of blood pressure-lowering drugs—an angiotensin-converting enzyme inhibitor plus an angiotensin-receptor blocker, added to enzyme replacement therapy with agalsidase-beta —is the first treatment shown to stop progressive loss of kidney function in patients with severe kidney involvement due to the rare genetic disorder Fabry disease, reports a study in the September Journal of American Society of Nephrology.

The most common procedure for clearing blocked kidney arteries can also release thousands of tiny particles into the bloodstream that can impair kidney function, according to researchers from Wake Forest University Baptist Medical Center and colleagues.

A new way to provide clear images of cancerous tumors in the kidney during surgery promises to help physicians preserve as much kidney function as possible while still removing all the malignant tissue - a significant advance as doctors discover that saving as much healthy kidney tissue as possible is crucial for the future health of cancer patients.

In an era of increasing death and illness from heart and blood vessel disease -- which also can impair kidney function -- Mayo Clinic researchers have designed two promising new cardiovascular treatment approaches. In the process, they have overcome a key technological hurdle that has stymied researchers around the world in the development of new therapies based on clusters of amino acids called peptides.