33.3% Nigerians, Ghanaians Risk Developing Kidney Disease — Study

Nearly one third of individuals in Nigeria and Ghana may likely develop kidney disease due to a genetic factor that is common among people from the West African region, a study led by Ifeoma Ulasi, a professor of Medicine and Nephrology at the University of Nigeria (UNN) and other experts, has discovered.

Ulasi, a Consultant Physician at the University of Nigeria Teaching Hospital (UNTH) disclosed this after the outcome of the research.

The research titled: “APOL1 Bi- and Monoallelic Variants and Chronic Disease in West Africa” was co-authored by Professor Ulasi, the Principal Investigators on the Study, Prof Akinlolu, Dr Adu and Prof Salako and other researchers, including those from the National Institute of Health (NIH).

The study highlighted that people from the West African region have a variant of a gene called APOL 1 which can significantly increase their risk of developing chronic kidney disease, including a rare kidney condition called focal segmental glomerulosclerosis.

According to the study, although APOL 1 is important for the immune system, a risk variant of a copy of the gene increases the possibility of developing chronic kidney infection by 18 percent and 25 percent if the variants occur in two copies of APOL 1.

The findings contrast with earlier studies on the African American population which suggested that both copies of APOL 1 were needed to increase the risk of developing kidney disease by individuals of African descent.

“It is necessary to identify other individuals in a family who may have the variant of the APOL 1 gene and are therefore at the risk of developing kidney disease,“ Prof Ulasi said.

The Consultant Physician added that the findings were significant in halting the progression of chronic kidney diseases in individuals, especially when diagnosed early.

“If your family member is suffering, or has suffered from a kidney disease, it is recommended that other members of the family should go for screening,” Ulasi said.

“Knowing your genetic risk for a disease, such as kidney diseases can help you make more informed decisions about your health and potentially lead to early intervention,” said Adebowale Adeyemo, a co-author of the study and Chief Scientific Officer at the Centre for Research on Genomics and Global Health at NIH’s National Human Genome Research Institute (NHGRI).

Over 8,000 people from Ghana and Nigeria participated in the study, including nearly 5,000 with chronic kidney diseases of various stages and more than 800 people who had kidney biopsies to confirm their kidney disease.