Lipid metabolism in AKI and AKI-CKD transition: Dysregulation, lipotoxicity and therapeutic potential

Acute kidney injury (AKI) is a prevalent clinical syndrome characterized by a rapid loss of renal function with high rates of morbidity and mortality. After AKI, the kidney may repair but the repair is often incomplete or maladaptive resulting in chronic pathologies for the development of chronic kidney disease (CKD). Emerging evidence highlights significant alterations in renal lipid profiles in both AKI and CKD models and human patients. The disturbances in lipid metabolism, characterized by lipid accumulation, lipid peroxidation, and subsequent development of a lipotoxic inflammatory milieu, are intricately linked to both the initiation of AKI and its transition or progression to CKD. Current research has focused on unraveling the changes in lipid metabolism and pinpoint the role of lipid dysregulation in AKI and AKI-CKD transition. In addition, pharmacological interventions targeting lipid metabolism have shown therapeutic promise in these disease models.