Background: Renal cysts, according to their etiology, can be divided into genetic and acquired cysts. This is of great importance in patients with cystic kidney disease with a possible poor prognosis to identify markers of early kidney damage.
Objectives: The objective of this study was to evaluate the concentration of serum and urine liver-type fatty acid binding protein (L-FABP) and interleukin 6 (IL-6) in children with kidney cysts.
Material and methods: The study was conducted on a group of 39 children with kidney cysts including 20 subjects with autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD).
Results: Serum and urine L-FABP concentration in children with renal cysts was significantly higher compared to the controls, regardless of the underlying type of cystic degeneration, number of cysts and gender. Also, serum and urinary IL-6 concentration was significantly higher than in the control group. There was a significant negative correlation between serum L-FABP concentration and standard deviation score (SDS) for diastolic blood pressure (DBP). A significant negative correlation was found between serum IL-6 concentration and systolic blood pressure (SBP), DBP and mean arterial pressure (MAP) values as well as SDS for SBP and DBP. In addition, a significant positive correlation was found between urinary IL-6 concentration and estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR).
Conclusions: Higher concentration of L-FABP in serum and urine in children with kidney cysts indicates the early damage to the renal parenchyma, detectable before the onset of hypertension and other organ damage. Significantly higher serum and urinary IL-6 levels in children with cystic kidney disease compared to healthy children may suggest the role of this cytokine in chronic kidney disease development.
Keywords: autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease; children; interleukin 6; kidney cysts; liver-type fatty acid binding protein.