ArticleBritish journal of clinical pharmacology2022
Apelin is expressed throughout the human kidney, is elevated in chronic kidney disease & associates independently with decline in kidney function.
Article in British journal of clinical pharmacology, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 18 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
18 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 19 citations in OpenAlex.
- Circulating levels of visfatin and apelin as biomarkers in chronic kidney disease: a systematic review and meta-analysis.International urology and nephrology · 2025Pooled it
- Cardiovascular and renal effects of apelin in chronic kidney disease: a randomised, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study.Nature communications · 2024Trial
- Differential serum dynamics of apelin, elabela, and angiotensinogen in CKD and haemodialysis: insights into peptide modulation across the dialysis procedure.Renal failure · 2026Article
- Context‑dependent duality of the apelin/elabela‑APJ system in diabetes and its complications (Review).International journal of molecular medicine · 2026Review
- APLNR reduction in kidney-muscle crosstalk in renal model recovered by exercise and STAT3 inhibition.Biochemistry and biophysics reports · 2026Article
- International Union of Basic and Clinical Pharmacology. CXXI. Apelin receptor pharmacology in the human cardiovascular system and emerging clinical applications.Pharmacological reviews · 2026Review
- Review
- The Apelinergic System in Kidney Disease: Novel Perspectives.International journal of molecular sciences · 2025Review
- Role and therapeutic potential of elabela in renal disease: from molecular mechanisms to clinical applications.Endocrine connections · 2025Review
- Predicting long-term kidney graft failure using novel multi-omic blood-based biomarkers and artificial intelligence tools.Kidney & blood pressure research · 2025Review
- Biomarkers for the early diagnosis of Alport syndrome and associated kidney damage.Childhood kidney diseases · 2025Review
- Insights into the effects of apelin-13 on renal function and NHE3 activity following ischemia/reperfusion-induced acute kidney injury.Frontiers in physiology · 2025Article
- Exploring the Molecular Modalities in the Pathogenesis of Diabetic Kidney Disease with a Focus on the Potential Therapeutic Implications.Biomedicines · 2024Review
- Unraveling the Complex Molecular Interplay and Vascular Adaptive Changes in Hypertension-Induced Kidney Disease.Biomedicines · 2024Article
- Apelin and Copeptin Levels in Patients With Chronic SIAD Treated With Empagliflozin.Journal of the Endocrine Society · 2024Article
- Expression of the apelin receptor, a novel potential therapeutic target, and its endogenous ligands in diverse stem cell populations in human glioblastoma.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2024Article
- Expanding the apelin receptor pharmacological toolbox using novel fluorescent ligands.Frontiers in endocrinology · 2023Article
- Apelin is expressed throughout the human kidney, is elevated in chronic kidney disease & associates independently with decline in kidney function.British journal of clinical pharmacology · 2022Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
9 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
Abstract
aimsChronic kidney disease (CKD) is common and cardiovascular disease (CVD) is its commonest complication. The apelin system is a potential therapeutic target for CVD but data relating to apelin in CKD are limited. We examined expression of the apelin system in human kidney, and investigated apelin and Elabela/Toddler (ELA), the endogenous ligands for the apelin receptor, in patients with CKD.
methodsUsing autoradiography, immunohistochemistry and enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, we assessed expression of apelin, ELA and the apelin receptor in healthy human kidney, and measured plasma apelin and ELA in 155 subjects (128 patients with CKD, 27 matched controls) followed up for 5 years. Cardiovascular assessments included blood pressure, arterial stiffness (pulse wave velocity) and brachial artery flow-mediated dilation. Surrogate markers of endothelial function (plasma asymmetric dimethylarginine and endothelin-1) and inflammation (C-reactive protein and interleukin-6) were measured.
resultsThe apelin system was expressed in healthy human kidney, throughout the nephron. Plasma apelin concentrations were 60% higher in women than men (6.48 [3.62-9.89] vs. 3.95 [2.02-5.85] pg/mL; P < .0001), and increased as glomerular filtration rate declined (R = -0.41, P < .0001), and albuminuria rose (R = 0.52, P < .0001). Plasma apelin and ELA were associated with vascular dysfunction. Plasma apelin associated independently with a 50% decline in glomerular filtration rate at 5 years.
conclusionWe show for the first time that the apelin system is expressed in healthy human kidney. Plasma apelin is elevated in CKD and may be a potential biomarker of risk of decline in kidney function. Clinical studies exploring the therapeutic potential of apelin agonism in CKD are warranted.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What Socratic holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.