New Medicines to Protect Kidneys from Sudden Damage
Official title: Inhibitors of Thromboinflammation for Acute Kidney Injury
Funded at Function Therapeutics, INC. · NIH-11087659 · Data updated 2026-11-12
This project looks at new medicines that could help prevent or treat sudden kidney damage in people who are at risk.
Quick facts
| Grant type | Sbir 1 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Function Therapeutics, INC. NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Milwaukee, United States) |
| Project start | May 15, 2024 |
| Project end | April 30, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $88,907 |
| NIH project number | 5R43DK138702-02 |
| Project ID | NIH-11087659 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal candidates would be patients at high risk for acute kidney injury, such as those undergoing major surgery, hospitalized with severe infections, or receiving certain anti-cancer therapies.
✕Less likely to help
Patients who do not have a risk of acute kidney injury or who already have established chronic kidney disease may not directly benefit from this specific preventative approach.
What this research studies
Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a serious problem where kidney function suddenly declines, often after major surgery, severe infections like COVID-19, or certain cancer treatments. Currently, there are no approved drugs to prevent this dangerous condition. This project explores a new type of medicine, called parmodulins, which works by calming down inflammation and blood clotting in the body. Researchers believe these medicines could be very helpful in protecting kidneys from injury and are working to optimize them for this purpose.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this could lead to the first approved drugs to prevent acute kidney injury, significantly improving patient outcomes and reducing the risk of chronic kidney disease.
How similar studies have gone: This approach involves a new class of molecules that have shown promising results in laboratory and animal models for related conditions, suggesting a novel but supported direction.
Where this research is happening
-
Function Therapeutics, INC.
Milwaukee, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Dockendorff, Christopher — Function Therapeutics, INC.
- Study coordinator: Dockendorff, Christopher
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
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SEAK Alliance: Improving Care for AKI Patients in the Southeast
A national, patient-centered effort to improve post-hospital care for people who had acute kidney injury in the Southeast.
-
AKI-related delirium after heart surgery
This grant funds research to understand why some people develop delirium after heart surgery when they also have acute kidney injury.
-
Better ways to identify types of sudden kidney injury in U.S. Veterans
Researchers are looking for genetic and health patterns that define different types of sudden severe kidney injury in Veterans to help guide future care.
-
Neuroimmune control of kidney injury using noninvasive ultrasound
A new approach uses targeted ultrasound to gently stimulate nerves and immune signals to help the kidney recover after injury.
-
Structure-based approach to prevent kidney injury from polymyxin use
Aims to block how polymyxin damages the kidney so it can be used more safely to treat hard-to-kill infections.
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Using smart computer predictions to prevent kidney injury after heart surgery
A machine-learning approach uses routinely collected hospital data to predict who might develop acute kidney injury after heart surgery, so clinicians can act early.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.