Relationship Between Serum Uromodulin as a Marker of Kidney Damage and Metabolic Status in Patients with Chronic Kidney Disease of Non-Diabetic Etiology

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is often associated with dyslipidemia, marked by lipid abnormalities that can worsen kidney function and increase cardiovascular risk. A promising biomarker for evaluating kidney function and metabolic status in chronic kidney disease (CKD) is serum uromodulin (sUmod). This study sought to further investigate the relationship between sUmod levels and metabolic status in non-diabetic CKD patients. A sensitive ELISA method was used to determine sUmod levels in 90 adults with obstructive nephropathy and 30 healthy controls. Kidney function was assessed using the measured glomerular filtration rate (mGFR) through renal clearance of 99mTc-diethylenetriamine penta-acetic acid, along with cystatin C levels. Additionally, glycemic and lipid statuses were evaluated. sUmod concentrations showed a significant association with High-density lipoprotein (HDL) levels. Furthermore, CKD patients with lower sUmod levels had significantly lower Apolipoprotein A-I (Apo A-I) values compared to the control group. Significant predictors of lower sUmod concentrations identified in this study were higher glycemia (B = -15.939; <i>p</i> = 0.003) and lower HDL cholesterol levels (B = 20.588; <i>p</i> = 0.019). We conclude that, in addition to being significantly reduced in CKD patients, sUmod is a potential predictor of metabolic syndrome (MS) in this population. Lower sUmod concentrations, independent of mGFR, predict lower HDL cholesterol levels and higher glycemia values.