β-hydroxybutyrate recapitulates the beneficial effects of ketogenic metabolic therapy in polycystic kidney disease.
Level 5 - mechanism / opinion, no new human data
Preclinical animal research in rodent models.
PubMed 39314240 · doi:10.1016/j.isci.2024.110773
What was done
Researchers evaluated the effects of time-restricted feeding and 48-hour periodic fasting regimens on polycystic kidney disease (PKD) progression in both juvenile and adult Cy/+ rats. To investigate whether ketone bodies mediate the effects of fasting, β-hydroxybutyrate (BHB) was administered to Cy/+ rats and orthologous mouse models of PKD (Pkd1 RC/RC and Pkd1-Ksp:Cre) comparing stereoisomers.
What was found
The abstract reports no numerical values or effect sizes. Qualitatively, both time-restricted feeding and periodic fasting prevented disease progression in juvenile rats and partially reversed PKD in adult rats. Exogenous BHB recapitulated the protective effects of fasting across all tested rodent models independent of stereoisomer.
Why it matters
These findings suggest that ketone body signaling, specifically via BHB, drives the therapeutic benefits of fasting in preclinical PKD models, identifying BHB supplementation as a potential metabolic intervention.
Limits
The study is entirely preclinical in rodent models, so direct applicability to human autosomal-dominant polycystic kidney disease is unproven. The abstract provides no sample sizes, treatment durations, quantitative outcome measurements, or statistical values.
Cited by
- supports Consuming fewer carbohydrates reduces cyst formation, while consuming more sugar and alcohol increases cyst growth.