Ubiquitin D as a potential target to help NASH, kidney disease, and liver cancer
Official title: Ubiquitin D as a potential therapeutic target for NASH, HCC and chronic kidney diseases
Funded at Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute · NIH-11365217 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A new approach targets a protein called UBD to help people with fatty liver disease, kidney disease, and liver cancer that can arise from liver disease.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R01 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (La Jolla, United States) |
| Project start | August 1, 2023 |
| Project end | May 31, 2028 |
| Funding year | 2026 |
| Award (this year) | $500,000 |
| NIH project number | 5R01DK133930-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11365217 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Adults with NASH/NAFLD and related kidney or cardiovascular complications who could potentially benefit from a targeted therapy in the future.
✕Less likely to help
Patients without NAFLD/NASH or related kidney/CVD complications may not directly benefit from this project.
What this research studies
This project aims to understand how UBD influences NASH, chronic kidney disease, and liver cancer, with the goal of identifying a therapy that can improve liver health and protect the kidneys and heart. Researchers plan to study UBD’s roles in liver cells, kidney cells, and tumor cells, and how it interacts with proteins like p53 and p62 to drive disease. By uncovering the mechanism, they hope to develop a targeted treatment that could benefit patients who have NAFLD/NASH and related complications. The work builds on observations that stopping UBD in mice improves metabolic health and lifespan, moving toward potential human therapies.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, this research could lead to a new treatment that improves liver disease, protects kidney function, and reduces cardiovascular risk in people with NAFLD/NASH.
How similar studies have gone: Preclinical data in animals show that reducing UBD improves metabolism and survival, suggesting potential for human benefit, but human data are not yet available.
Where this research is happening
-
Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute
La Jolla, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Dhar, Debanjan — Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute
- Study coordinator: Dhar, Debanjan
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
Chronic Kidney Disease of Unknown Cause in Agricultural Communities
A wide study to find what causes a serious kidney disease that affects workers in farming areas, by looking at people in high-risk regions.
-
Understanding Ubiquitin D for Liver and Kidney Diseases
This project looks at a protein called Ubiquitin D to find new ways to help people with liver conditions like NASH and HCC, and also chronic kidney disease.
-
Understanding CKDu in agricultural communities
This project brings researchers together to find the causes and clues behind chronic kidney disease of unknown cause in farming communities so people affected can get better prevention and care.
-
Investigating chronic kidney disease in agricultural communities
This study is looking into chronic kidney disease that affects farming communities, and it aims to find out what causes it and how it develops, so if you're a patient, your health information and samples could really help us learn more about this condition.
-
Improving kidney health in patients with chronic kidney disease through a systems biology approach.
This study is looking at how low oxygen levels affect kidney cells in people with chronic kidney disease, and it aims to create a helpful scoring system to better understand how these changes relate to patient outcomes, which could lead to improved treatments for those living with this condition.
-
Metabolic Boost to Kidney Health in ADPKD
A Johns Hopkins-led study is exploring how fueling kidney cells with fats and FGF21 signals could slow kidney disease in adults with ADPKD.
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.