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Earlier this year, the FDA responded to the findings of CHOIR and several other studies by issuing a Public Health Advisory about the risks associated with erythropoiesis-stimulating agents, and introducing a black box warning to the labeling of these drugs. In this Viewpoint, Ajay K Singh responds to some of the criticisms that have been leveled at CHOIR and offers some practical advice for implementing the FDA's guidance.
The Appropriate Blood Pressure Control in Diabetes (ABCD) study remains one of the most relevant sources of data on the vexed issue of optimum management of blood pressure in diabetic patients. This Review by trial investigators provides a more-comprehensive description of data that have emerged from this 5-year, randomized study of moderate versus intensive control of blood pressure using either a calcium channel blocker or an ACE inhibitor.
The Acute Kidney Injury Network (AKIN) met in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, in September 2005. At the 2-day meeting, participants in this multidisciplinary collaboration proposed a standard definition, and scheme for the classification, of AKI. Widespread adoption of these standards, presented here by members of the AKIN working group, would help to advance the study of this condition, and improve patient outcomes.
The authors provide a brief overview of the physiological and pharmacological relevance of proteins that translocate organic anions. Focusing on OATs located in the basolateral membrane of proximal tubule cells, the authors discuss data fromXenopusoocytes and knockout mice. The potential for new findings to shed light on an individual patient's response to treatment with a particular drug, and the risks of toxic effects, are emphasized.
Elucidating the mechanisms that contribute to disease development often requires experiments that are difficult to perform in patients. Mutant mice that recapitulate the characteristics of the X-linked disorder Dent disease have proved to be useful experimental surrogates. Here, an investigator involved in development of one of these mouse models summarizes the most clinically relevant data that have been generated to date.
