The association between urinary kidney injury molecule 1 and urinary cadmium in elderly during long-term, low-dose cadmium exposure: a pilot study

Abstract

BackgroundUrinary kidney injury molecule 1 is a recently discovered early biomarker for renal damage that has been proven to be correlated to urinary cadmium in rats. However, so far the association between urinary cadmium and kidney injury molecule 1 in humans after long-term, low-dose cadmium exposure has not been studied.MethodsWe collected urine and blood samples from 153 non-smoking men and women aged 60+, living in an area with moderate cadmium pollution from a non-ferrous metal plant for a significant period. Urinary cadmium and urinary kidney injury molecule 1 as well as other renal biomarkers (alpha1-microglobulin, beta2-microglobulin, blood urea nitrogen, urinary proteins and microalbumin) were assessed.ResultsBoth before (r = 0.20; p = 0.01) and after (partial r = 0.32; p < 0.0001) adjustment for creatinine, age, sex, past smoking, socio-economic status and body mass index, urinary kidney injury molecule 1 correlated with urinary cadmium concentrations. No significant association was found between the other studied renal biomarkers and urinary cadmium.ConclusionsWe showed that urinary kidney injury molecule 1 levels are positively correlated with urinary cadmium concentration in an elderly population after long-term, low-dose exposure to cadmium, while other classical markers do not show an association. Therefore, urinary kidney injury molecule 1 might be considered as a biomarker for early-stage metal-induced kidney injury by cadmium.

Kidney Biomarkers Associated with Blood Lead, Mercury, and Cadmium in Premenopausal Women: A Prospective Cohort Study

“…A cross-sectional study among adult men did not find that Pb or Cd were associated with BUN (Mortada et al 2004); however, unlike the BioCycle Study, this study was cross-sectional and included only 68 males. A pilot study among the elderly found no marked association between Cd and BUN (Pennemans et al 2011). An rise in protein was noted with Hg exposure.…”

Collection and storage requirements for urinary kidney injury molecule-1 (KIM-1) measurements in humans

“…Storage requirements (long-term) One hundred and twenty-six samples were used, which had been collected within the framework of an environmental study conducted in autumn 2009 [for details see Pennemans et al (31) ]. They were frozen at -80 ° C within 4 h after voiding.…”

Cadmium induces actin cytoskeleton alterations and dysfunction in Neuro‐2a cells

“…Cd has the potential to affect human health, but mainly those who live in highly industrialized regions . The half‐life period of Cd in the human body is more than 15 years, which may result in a high incidence of Cd‐related diseases, including impaired renal function, decreased bone mineral density, increased calcium excretion, reproductive toxicity, and neurotoxicity . Among the various Cd‐related diseases, the nephrotoxicity has been widely studied and well‐illustrated .…”