Novel pharmacological developments for the treatment of diabetic kidney disease

In addition to being one of the main consequences of diabetes, Diabetic Kidney Disease (DKD) is also the main cause of End Stage Renal Disease (ESRD). The incidence and progression of DKD have long been important clinical issues that raise morbidity and death while severely impairing people's quality of life. DKD can progress more slowly if blood sugar, blood pressure, blood lipids, and lifestyle factors are managed.

A growing number of new drugs are being developed based on extensive research into the pathological and molecular causes of DKD. Examples include Sodium Glucose Cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors, Glucagon Like Peptide-1 (GLP-1) inhibitors, and Dipeptidyl Peptidase-4 (DPP-4) inhibitors, all of which have demonstrated good clinical efficacy. Aside from that, there are a number of recently created medications, such as Protein Kinase C (PKC) inhibitors, Advanced Glycation End product (AGE) inhibitors, aldosterone receptor inhibitors, Endothelin Receptor (ETR) inhibitors, Transforming Growth Factor- (TGF-) inhibitors, Rho Kinase (ROCK) inhibitors, and others, that have shown promise in animal or clinical trials for the treatment of DKD.