Abstract

The overarching goal of our research efforts is to define chronic organ dysfunction in mechanistic terms and use this knowledge for targeted therapeutic interventions. To reach this goal we have developed a translational research pipeline centered on integrated systems biology analysis of renal disease in a series of prospective cohort studies around the world. In these studies, we test the precision medicine concept for renal disease by integrating information along the genotype-phenotype continuum using carefully monitored environmental exposures, genetic predispositions, epigenetic markers, transcriptional networks, proteomic profiles, metabolic fingerprints, digital histological biopsy archive, and prospective clinical disease characterization. 
We will provide an overview of our tissue biopsy centric precision medicine strategy and introduce the implementation and impact of our approach in the Nephrotic Syndrome Study Network (NEPTUNE) for rare kidney disease and in the Kidney Precision Medicine Project (KPMP) for common renal diseases. I will conclude with an outlook how we are using single cell biopsy level analyses from the first successful trials in human kidney disease to define treatment response in a cell and patient specific manner.

Biosketch

Prof. Kretzler has 25 years of experience on interdisciplinary data integration of large-scale data sets in international multi-disciplinary research networks in the United States, Europe, China, and sub-Saharan Africa. These studies enable precision medicine across the genotype-phenotype continuum using carefully monitored environmental exposures, genetic predispositions, transcriptional networks, proteomic profiles, metabolic fingerprints, digital histological biopsy archive and prospective clinical disease characterization. The molecular mechanisms identified have resulted in new disease predictors, new drug development and successful clinical trials of novel therapeutic modalities in chronic kidney disease.

Contact

Matthias Kretzler, MD
Warner-Lambert/Parke-Davis Professor, Internal Medicine-Nephrology
Professor, Computational Medicine & Bioinformatics
Internal Medicine-Nephrology 1570A
Medical Science Research Building II
Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109
kretzler@med.umich.edu