Renal

Patient sample and mouse studies suggest inhibiting VEGF-B could help treat diabetic nephropathy. In patients, VEGF-B expression was higher in kidney glomeruli tissue than in kidney tissue samples from transplant patients. In a genetic mouse model of diabetic nephropathy, VEGF-B knockdown or an anti-VEGF-B antibody decreased renal lipid accumulation and blood pressure and increased kidney function compared with normal VEGF-B expression or an isotype-matched control antibody. In a mouse model of Type II diabetes, the anti-VEGF-B antibody decreased renal lipid accumulation and increased kidney function compared with a non-specific antibody. In a mouse model of Type I diabetes, the anti-VEGF-B antibody decreased renal lipid accumulation and decreased markers of diabetic nephropathy. Next steps could include identifying small molecule VEGF-B inhibitors...