Kidney Disease Research Updates
Fall 2007

NIDDK Director Shares Vision for Kidney Disease Research

Griffin P. Rodgers, M.D., director of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases (NIDDK), National Institutes of Health (NIH), shares his vision and the Institute’s goals for kidney disease research.

As the newly-appointed Director of the NIDDK, I want to underscore the Institute’s commitment to vigorous, multipronged research efforts to combat the diseases within our research mission. I am pleased to have the opportunity to share with the nephrology community my vision for the Institute over the next few years.

Chronic kidney disease (CKD), along with end-stage renal disease (ESRD), imposes a tremendous public health burden on Americans. According to the most recent Annual Data Report from the United States Renal Data System, patients with CKD or ESRD account for 5.7 and 1.1 percent of the Medicare population, respectively. Together, the treatment of patients with CKD and patients with ESRD accounts for 23.7� percent of Medicare expenditures, making kidney disease an extremely important issue for both research priority setting and public policy considerations.

Diabetes and obesity—diseases within the NIDDK’s core mission—may increase the likelihood of developing kidney disease and speed its progression. The NIDDK is particularly concerned about CKD in children, an issue of particular significance given the increasing rates of obesity in this vulnerable population.

The primary scientific programs within the NIDDK’s Division of Kidney, Urologic, and Hematologic Diseases (KUH) support basic, translational, and clinical research; research training and career development; and the dissemination of health information to improve the lives of patients, their families, and those at risk for kidney disease. We will continue to support research that will further evidence-based medicine and promote the translation of research discoveries into medical practice for the direct benefit of patients.

The NIDDK is committed to pursuing the most compelling research to combat kidney disease. In moving this important research forward, several overarching principles will guide my leadership of the Institute:

Maintain a Vigorous Investigator-initiated Research Portfolio. Because the innovation and problem-solving of individual investigators are crucial for research progress, the NIDDK will maintain funding of investigator-initiated grants at the highest possible level.

One goal is to maximize our investments by supporting cross-cutting science that is broadly applicable to many disease-specific research issues, such as studies of gene-environment interactions and identification of biomarkers to aid in the diagnosis of disease and assessment of new treatments in clinical trials. We will also invest in the novel application of existing technology and development of new technology.

The NIDDK will continue to invest in the development of cell-based therapeutic approaches for repairing damaged tissues and the use of cutting-edge research methods to identify new candidate drugs.

Support Pivotal Clinical Studies and Trials. Clinical studies will continue to be an integral component of NIDDK kidney disease research. The NIDDK supports studies of patients with acute kidney injury, moderate and severe kidney disease, and those who have progressed to ESRD and dialysis or transplantation. The Institute also funds clinical studies aimed at preventing further complications from initial kidney damage and at improving treatment options for ESRD.

Because kidney disease disproportionately affects minority populations, we will continue to seek insights and answers to health disparities. For instance, one clinical trial is investigating the underlying causes of ESRD to find ways that could slow progression of hypertensive kidney disease in African Americans.

We are also expanding the investigative community’s access to very valuable research resources accrued in our major clinical trials. To this end, we are supporting ancillary studies to these trials and a central repository for biologic materials from clinical trials.

Preserve a Stable Pool of Talented New Investigators. The ideas and fresh perspectives of new investigators invigorate the research community. Our efforts will include fostering mentorship of new investigators and promoting special consideration for funding talented new investigators.

The NIDDK also has a vigorous research career development award program for scientists in the early stages of their careers. These opportunities will be complemented by the NIDDK’s participation in NIH-wide efforts that support new investigators, such as the NIH Pathway to Independence Program and the NIH Loan Repayment Program.

Foster Exceptional Research Training and Mentoring Opportunities. Maintaining an NIDDK-focused pipeline of outstanding investigators is critically important to our research progress against disease. To this end, we offer programs for individuals at different stages in their careers—ranging from those who have already attained advanced degrees to those who are very early in their educational development.

We encourage minority investigators to apply for all of our research training and career development awards and also support a Network of Minority Research Investigators to further their long-term academic research careers.

Ensure Knowledge Dissemination Through Outreach and Communications. The NIDDK is committed to translating new knowledge derived from NIH-funded research into better care for people with kidney disease. The NIDDK’s National Kidney Disease Education Program (NKDEP) works to reduce morbidity and mortality caused by kidney disease and its complications through educational efforts targeted at communities at risk, patients, and health care professionals.

A critical piece of the Institute’s efforts to reduce kidney disease is the ability to assess the burden of the disease in the United States. Therefore, the Institute, along with the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, will continue to support the United States Renal Data System (USRDS). The USRDS is a national data system that collects, analyzes, and distributes information about ESRD in America.

As we plan for the future, we will continue to seek and value external advice from investigators, professional scientific organizations, patient advocates, and the public. Key sources of input will continue to be our National Advisory Council, strategic planning processes, Interagency Coordinating Committees, ad hoc planning groups, and scientific conferences and workshops. This input will provide a useful scientific guidepost as we make resource allocation decisions. Active collaboration with other components of the NIH and other federal agencies will also remain a cornerstone of NIDDK planning efforts. We will continue to seek and value such planning processes as we move forward.

Ever-increasing knowledge and the advent of new technologies bring new scientific opportunities for alleviating and conquering the many chronic diseases within the NIDDK’s mission. Our continuing goal will be to seize and maximize these opportunities to reduce the burden of disease and improve the public health. To this end, I look forward to working with the NIDDK’s many stakeholders in the nephrology community now and in the future.

NIH Publication No. 08–4531
November 2007

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