Approved research

Causes, Correlates and Consequences of Reduced Renal Function

Lay summary

We intend to investigate the potential causes, correlates and consequences of reduced renal function and chronic kidney disease (CKD). This project aims: (1) To understand the characteristics of self-reported CKD patients. (2) To assess the cross-sectional associations of renal biomarkers with biological, lifestyle and other characteristics. (3) To examine the within-person variability of renal biomarkers. (4) To identify genetic determinants of CKD and renal biomarkers. (5) To characterise the associations of CKD and impaired renal function with the risk of several diseases. CKD is a major global health problem affecting about 15% of the adult population worldwide. This research will provide a comprehensive assessment of the causes, correlates and consequences of impaired renal function and CKD, and will give insight into possible therapeutic areas, which could be investigated further in the view of developing future medication. In the first phase, we will perform analyses investigating the prevalence of self-reported CKD and its associations with other prevalent diseases as well as with socio-demographic, lifestyle, environment, early life, psychosocial and physical measures. When available in UK Biobank, we will analyse the genetic and biochemical data to assess the genetic determinants, cross-sectional correlates and within person-variability of markers of renal function. Once suitable numbers of disease outcomes have accrued we will examine the relationships of impaired renal function with future health outcomes. The full cohort will be required.