Urinary kidney injury molecule-1 in patients with IgA nephropathy is closely associated with disease severity

Background. The pathological characteristics of IgA nephropathy (IgAN) are highly variable. Urinary kidney injury molecule-1 (KIM-1) is a sensitive biomarker for proximal tubule injury. The aim of the study is to investigate the value of KIM-1 as a biomarker for assessing the renal injury in IgAN. Methods. The levels of urinary KIM-1 in 202 patients with IgAN, 46 patients with other renal diseases as disease controls and 60 healthy blood donors as normal controls were measured. Correlations with clinical and histopathological features of patients with IgAN were evaluated. Results. The levels of urinary KIM-1 were significantly higher in patients with IgAN than in normal controls (P < 0.001) and in patients with non-IgAN (P = 0.011). Urinary levels of KIM-1 in IgAN positively correlated with levels of serum creatinine and proteinuria and negatively with creatinine clearance. The more severe the tubulointerstitial injury was, the higher the levels of urinary KIM-1. Patients with severe mesangial proliferation, crescents formation or endocapillary proliferation had higher levels of urinary KIM-1 than those without. The levels of tubular KIM-1 expression in immunohistochemistry closely correlated with the levels of urinary KIM-1 (r = 0.553, P = 0.032). Renal survival was significantly worse in patients with elevated urinary KIM-1 (P = 0.020). Conclusion. Urinary KIM-1 may be a useful biomarker to evaluate kidney injury in IgAN.