Understanding the pathogenesis of haemolytic uraemic syndrome: the role of the podocyte

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Haemolytic uraemic syndrome (HUS) is the leading cause of acute kidney failure in children. 1-5%of children with HUS die and some are left with chronic kidney damage. It is commonly caused by agastrointestinal infection (E.coli) that affects >1000 people/year in Britain. It produces toxins, whichin 10-15% of cases causes kidney and other organ damage. It is a public health concern. Currently,we do not understand how HUS is caused and therefore management focuses on supportive care.Recent work by our collaborators using a mouse model has provided a potential breakthrough in ourunderstanding of HUS.This project will build on this and aims to investigate the kidney effects of HUS. It will study theeffects of the toxin on specific kidney cells. We will create a mouse model that closely resembles thedisease in humans. This part of the project is underway. We will also look at human kidney cellsusing different techniques to see how the toxin affects them and, in particular, how the toxin affectsthe interaction between these cells. Understanding how this disease affects the kidney will identifypotential ways of treating this condition and alleviate the suffering of affected children and theirfamilies.