Jordan Kreidberg, MD, PhD, director of Developmental Biology and Stem Cell Research in the Boston Children's Hospital Division of Nephrology, conducts research on kidney stem cells in an effort to find new regenerative treatments for conditions that lead to renal failure in children and adults with irreversible damage to their kidneys, such as diabetes, polycystic kidney disease, and focal segmental glomerulosclerosis.
Kreidberg and his team have identified the genes in kidney stem cells that direct kidney development and are interested in using these genes to coax kidney stem cells, embryonic stem cells and induced pluripotent stem cells (iPS cells) into functional kidney cells for transplantation. Understanding how these genes work may also assist doctors in helping diseased kidneys heal themselves.
