IgA nephropathy associated with coeliac disease.

Coeliac disease (CD) is an autoimmune disorder of the small intestine triggered by ingested gluten from barley, rye and wheat. It can be associated with other autoimmune conditions, such as type 1 diabetes, autoimmune thyroiditis and hepatitis, Sjögren's syndrome and IgA nephropathy (IgAN). We describe here a case of a 24-year-old man with the above-mentioned atypical form of coeliac disease for whom the diagnosis started with renal disorder. The diagnosis of nephrotic syndrome was established and the coexistence with CD was also suspected. In fact, immunoglobulin (Ig) A and IgG antibodies against endomysium and against gliadin were detected in serum of the patient and the endoscopic biopsy of the duodenum revealed stage 3B CD. Percutaneous kidney biopsy was also performed. Class I IgAN was diagnosed. Gluten-free diet, ACE inhibitor and oral iron were introduced to the patient. The improvement of clinical and laboratory disorders of CD as well as gradual remission of the nephrotic syndrome were observed. In conclusion, there may be a small group of patients with IgAN coexisting with CD in whom a gluten-free diet seems to be the treatment of choice for the resolution of kidney disease.

Nutritional Status in Peritoneal Dialysis: Nutritional Guidelines, Adequacy and the Management of Malnutrition.

The positive impact of nutritional status on the health and treatment adequacy of peritoneal dialyzed patients has been well established. Protein intake is an important factor used to stratify malnutrition, with inadequate intake leading to protein-energy wasting during the course of therapy. In this review, we discuss the recommendations made by nephrological societies regarding nutrition in this population of dialysis patients. Special attention is given to the intake of protein, and recommendations on the intake of micronutrients are also discussed. Furthermore, factors that may impair nutritional intake and balance are discussed, with mention of the innovative strategies utilized to combat them. In light of inconsistent recommendations that vary between each respective society, as well as a general lack of concise information, it is our intention to call for further research regarding nutritional recommendations in peritoneal dialysis (PD), as well as to advocate for clear and accessible information for patients.

The genetic architecture of membranous nephropathy and its potential to improve non-invasive diagnosis.

Membranous Nephropathy (MN) is a rare autoimmune cause of kidney failure. Here we report a genome-wide association study (GWAS) for primary MN in 3,782 cases and 9,038 controls of East Asian and European ancestries. We discover two previously unreported loci, NFKB1 (rs230540, OR = 1.25, P = 3.4 × 10-12) and IRF4 (rs9405192, OR = 1.29, P = 1.4 × 10-14), fine-map the PLA2R1 locus (rs17831251, OR = 2.25, P = 4.7 × 10-103) and report ancestry-specific effects of three classical HLA alleles: DRB1*1501 in East Asians (OR = 3.81, P = 2.0 × 10-49), DQA1*0501 in Europeans (OR = 2.88, P = 5.7 × 10-93), and DRB1*0301 in both ethnicities (OR = 3.50, P = 9.2 × 10-23 and OR = 3.39, P = 5.2 × 10-82, respectively). GWAS loci explain 32% of disease risk in East Asians and 25% in Europeans, and correctly re-classify 20-37% of the cases in validation cohorts that are antibody-negative by the serum anti-PLA2R ELISA diagnostic test. Our findings highlight an unusual genetic architecture of MN, with four loci and their interactions accounting for nearly one-third of the disease risk.