Recent evaluation of urinary Kidney Injury Molecule 1 (KIM-1) and its biological role for AKI

Abstract

Kidney injury molecule 1 (KIM-1) is highly upregulated in proximal tubular cells following kidney injury, and its ectodomain is shed into the lumen. The usefulness of urinary KIM-1 for early diagnosis of acute kidney injury (AKI) especially in cardiac surgery patients has been demonstrated by systematic review and meta-analysis. However, its usefulness for predicting prognosis and AKI severity, and in patients with sepsis has not been elucidated. It has been shown that KIM-1 upregulation in the kidney, following an injury, has a critical role in kidney repair. Thus, KIM-1 is gaining attention as a novel therapeutic target of AKI. Recent reports reveal that KIM-1 levels in blood might reflect not only kidney injury, but also other organ injuries and/or disease prognosis. Therefore, further investigations about the origin of circulating KIM-1 and its role are required.