Severely damaged kidneys possess multipotent renoprotective stem cells

Background aims. Tissue-specific stem cells are a promising target for kidney regeneration, because it has been shown that they play a primary role in kidney repair. Several methods have been developed for the isolation of stem/progenitor cells from healthy kidneys but the existence of these cells in chronically damaged kidneys has not been noticed so far. Methods. A mouse model of chronic kidney failure was developed by ligation of the left ureter for 5 months, and then isolation of stem cells from this tissue as well as normal kidneys was attempted. Results. We found that multipotent stem cells could be isolated from both types of tissue. In addition, the cells isolated from damaged kidneys showed potential for homing to the site of injury and a renoprotective effect in an animal model of cisplatin-induced nephropathy. Conclusions. These results show that multipotent renoprotective stem cells exist in severely damaged kidneys, which could be a target for designing new therapies.