Umut Rende

Umut Rende PhD Candidate | Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering, UNSW, Sydney Umut Rende is a PhD student at UNSW Graduate School of Biomedical Engineering since 2020. He is investigating pathological mechanisms in the progressive scarring (fibrosis) and its regression in kidneys and aims to discover new drug targets to cure chronic kidney disease (CKD). Currently, he is a part of NSW Health’s PhD Partnership Program and partnering with Kolling Institute (Royal North Shore Hospital) and Pharmaxis.

Kidney Scientist Day Presentation title: Diagnostic and prognostic biomarkers for tubulointerstitial fibrosis

Renal fibrosis is the final common pathophysiological pathway in chronic kidney disease (CKD) regardless of the underlying cause of kidney injury. Tubulointerstitial fibrosis (TIF) is considered to be the key pathological predictor of CKD progression. Currently, the gold standard tool to identify TIF is kidney biopsy, an invasive method that carries risks. Non-invasive diagnostics rely on an estimation of glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) and albuminuria that assess kidney function, but these fail to accurately diagnose early kidney pathology and predict progressive decline in kidney function. In this presentation, I will summarize potential biomarkers to non-invasively diagnose TIF and potential novel technologies which might be used to assess TIF.