Skip to main content

Thank you for visiting nature.com. You are using a browser version with limited support for CSS. To obtain the best experience, we recommend you use a more up to date browser (or turn off compatibility mode in Internet Explorer). In the meantime, to ensure continued support, we are displaying the site without styles and JavaScript.

  • Comment
  • Published:

Innovations in dialysis membranes for improved kidney replacement therapy

Haemodialysis is a life-saving therapy. However, in comparison with the healthy kidney, it removes only a small fraction of the uraemic toxins produced, does not function continuously and cannot replicate biological kidney functions. Innovations in membrane design hold promise to overcome these limitations with potential to improve patient outcomes.

This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution

Access options

Buy this article

Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout

References

  1. Ronco, C. & Clark, W. R. Haemodialysis membranes. Nat. Rev. Nephrol. 14, 394–410 (2018).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  2. Legallais, C. et al. Bioengineering organs for blood detoxification. Adv. Healthc. Mater. 7, e1800430 (2018).

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  3. Florens, N. et al. Using binding competitors of albumin to promote the removal of protein-bound uremic toxins in hemodialysis: hope or pipe dream? Biochimie 144, 1–8 (2018).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  4. Storr, M. & Ward, R. A. Membrane innovation: closer to native kidneys. Nephrol. Dial. Transplant. 33 (Suppl. 3), iii22–iii27 (2018).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  5. Feinberg, B. J. et al. Silicon nanoporous membranes as a rigorous platform for validation of biomolecular transport models. J. Memb. Sci. 536, 44–51 (2017).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  6. Geremia, I. et al. In vitro assessment of mixed matrix hemodialysis membrane for achieving endotoxin-free dialysate combined with high removal of uremic toxins from human plasma. Acta Biomaterialia 90, 100–111 (2019).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  7. ter Beek, O. E. M. et al. Hollow fiber membranes for long-term hemodialysis based on polyethersulfone-SlipSkin™ polymer blends. J. Memb. Sci. 604, 118068 (2020).

    Article  Google Scholar 

  8. Dukhin, S. S. et al. Outside-in hemofiltration for prolonged operation without clogging. J. Memb. Sci. 464, 173–178 (2014).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  9. Chevtchik, N. V. et al. Upscaling of a living membrane for bioartificial kidney device. Eur. J. Pharmacol. 790, 28–35 (2016).

    Article  CAS  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  10. Fissell, W. & Roy, S. The implantable artificial kidney. Semin. Dial. 22, 665–670 (2009).

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the financial support of the EUTox working group of the European society of European Society for artificial organs, and The Stitching Life Sciences Health – TKI (Grant no. LSHM16059-SGF (NOVAMEM).

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

Authors

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Dimitrios Stamatialis.

Ethics declarations

Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

Additional information

Related links

Kidney Health Initiative: https://khi.asn-online.org

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Geremia, I., Stamatialis, D. Innovations in dialysis membranes for improved kidney replacement therapy. Nat Rev Nephrol 16, 550–551 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41581-020-0293-6

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41581-020-0293-6

This article is cited by

Search

Quick links

Nature Briefing

Sign up for the Nature Briefing newsletter — what matters in science, free to your inbox daily.

Get the most important science stories of the day, free in your inbox. Sign up for Nature Briefing