Component of Grapefruit Blocks the Formation of Kidney Cysts

A new research highlights the importance of a component naturally found in grapefruits and other citrus fruits. The study claims that 'naringenin' successfully blocks the formation of kidney cysts.

A collaborated finding presented by scientists from the Royal Holloway University, St George's, University of London and Kingston University London, claims that the component naringenin found in grapefruits and other citrus fruits blocks the formation of kidney cysts.  With the help of a single celled amoeba, they identified the component naringenin that controls and blocks the PKD2 protein responsible for triggering the polycystic kidney disease.

Polycystic kidney disease is a genetic disorder. This is one of the most common life-threatening genetic diseases and affects nearly 12.5 million people worldwide. Data according to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Service show that nearly 600,000 Americans suffer from PKS and it is the fourth leading cause of Kidney failure in the country.  PKD not only causes kidney failure but also triggers high blood pressure and the victims have to undergo dialysis.

"This discovery provides an important step forward in understanding how polycystic kidney disease may be controlled," said Professor Robin Williams from the School of Biological Sciences at Royal Holloway, in a statement. "In the study, we have demonstrated how effective the amoeba Dictyostelium is in the discovery of new treatments and their targets. Having previously applied the same method of testing in our work into epilepsy and bipolar treatments, it is clear that this new approach could help us reduce reliance on animal testing and provide major improvements."

The team conducted a test on a mammalian kidney cell line and caused the formation of cysts in these cells. They later added the component naringenin to the cysts and noticed that the component helped drop the levels of PKD2 protein in the kidney and this led to a blockage of the cyst formation.

The team plans to conduct further tests to analyze the action of the naringenin component at the molecular level. They will also look at the function of PKD2 protein as a cell growth regulator. This new finding is an example of how new drugs can be developed by chemicals present in plants.

The study was presented in the British Journal of Pharmacology.