EKF biomarker identifies people likely to develop Diabetic Nephropathy

EKF Diagnostics Holdings plc (AIM: EKF), the AIM-listed point-of-care, central laboratory, and molecular diagnostics business, highlights that new data has been presented in support of soluble Tumour Necrosis Factor Receptor 1 (sTNFR1) as a biomarker to predict the progression of Diabetic Nephropathy (also referred to as Diabetic Kidney Disease).

This new data was presented at Kidney Week, the world’s premier nephrology meeting, organized by the American Society for Nephrology (ASN), which took place in San Diego, California, from November 3rd to 8th, 2015.

The study from the Joslin Diabetes Center, one of the leading diabetes research institutes in the world, includes sTNFR1 data on 1335 patients followed over four to six years. This study was partly funded by EKF and is co-authored by EKF Diagnostics, Pfizer, Eli Lilly, and leading researchers from the Joslin Diabetes Center. The data highlights the role that sTNFR1 can play in identifying diabetic patients for inclusion in clinical trials of novel therapeutic interventions to prevent or delay progression to End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD).

The current practice of clinical trial recruitment is typically limited to patients with high levels of urinary albumin excretion (or proteinuria) who may not, in fact, progress towards ESRD. The study describes how using the novel biomarker sTNFR1 from EKF can help target patients who are most likely to exhibit progressive Diabetic Nephropathy during a clinical trial and, therefore, will benefit most from new treatments.

There have been several other recent publications demonstrating that elevated circulating sTNFR1 levels are strongly associated with the subsequent development of advanced Diabetic Kidney Disease (DKD) in Type I and Type 2 diabetic patients.

Julian Baines, CEO of EKF Diagnostics, commented: “Diabetic Nephropathy is the leading cause of ESRD worldwide, and early identification of those most at risk of progression remains a significant unmet need. The growing awareness and utility of sTNFR1 as a biomarker of progressive Diabetic Nephropathy are evident. This large and exciting new data set confirms our findings at EKF and with other collaborators. Such impressive data presented at ASN puts us in front of the world’s leading kidney specialists and will pave the way to adopting sTNFR1 as a routine test in managing Diabetic Nephropathy.”