Kidney filtration rate & Brain White Matter: Prevention matters because brain damage is occurring before obvious Diagnostic symptoms of chronic illness are present.
2025 new publication
Chronic Kidney Disease is a progressive degenerative condition which causes reduced filtration of the blood supply and toxins and waste may accumulate to higher levels within the brain and body. Microvascular changes were studied within the white matter of the brain in association with assessment of kidney glomular filtration rate. Negative changes were observed in the brain with reduced rates of kidney function that wouldn’t present with outright symptoms of kidney illness or be diagnostic - yet brain health was being harmed in ways that might lead to stroke later in life.
The big picture suggestion from the study by Littig, et al., 2025, is that roughly, if you have reduced kidney filtration than white matter changes are also occurring in the brain vessels in a damaging way. The kidney filtration rate could be used as a biomarker to predict risk to brain health…and kidney health, far sooner than an official “Chronic Kidney Disease” diagnosis is currently being given.
Abstract 102: Association Between Kidney Function and Severity of White Matter Hyperintensity: The Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study | Stroke, (Littig, et al., 2025) Via Dmitry Katz and Google Scholar Alerts.
Association Between Kidney Function and Severity of White Matter Hyperintensity: The Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities Study
L Littig, N Krothapalli, KH Wong, Y Kim, H Smith… - Stroke, 2025
Background and Purpose: Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is associated with an
increased risk of stroke and worse outcomes, yet it is often asymptomatic, with an
estimated 90% of individuals unaware they have CKD until its later stages. Due to …
The fact that Alzheimer’s dementia is diagnosed at a stage that already has 90% damage, IS REALLY IMPORTANT. That is too late, bluntly. Reversal of dead cells is less likely than preventing cell death at earlier stages.
The successful studies on animal research or human clinical trials, were supplementing with vitamin K2 over an extended time period, longer than a year in the more successful human trials, and over much of the course of the animal’s lifespan in the more clearly successful animal-based studies on aging and prevention of soft tissue calcification.
The take home point I’ve gathered from the K2 series, is that we need to work on a healthy gut microbiome so that it makes plenty of vitamin K2 for us as even Natto fermented soybeans would only provide about one milligram in a standardly consumed portion size. Bacillus subtilis can be part of our normal microbiome and produce vitamin K2 in our gut instead of in Natto soybeans.
MEGA SporeBiotic by Microbiome Labs contains B. subtilis and other Bacillus spores in a shelf stable product, no refrigeration needed, (convenient for vitamin box use). That product is carried on Fullscript but others in the product line might not be. As an affiliate with the company I can provide an access Code to set up a patient account for direct order. Email me if you are interested in the code, I need to be cautious of wholesale fraud accounts over buying to resell in bulk elsewhere and need a patient type of relationship for providing the Code.
Microbiome Labs’ site offers many free Webinars,microbiomelabs.com/biomefx-webinars/; and a 2025 symposium is scheduled for September, register for $99, digital access.
Introduction to Microbiome Structure and Function, Speaker Kara Siedman, RD, presented by (microbiomelabs.com).
Back to Chronic Kidney Disease and White Matter Hyperintensity (*not a good thing).
Full Abstract:
“Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is associated with an increased risk of stroke and worse outcomes, yet it is often asymptomatic, with an estimated 90% of individuals unaware they have CKD until its later stages. Due to the functional and anatomical similarities of the kidney and brain microvasculature, the effects of early-stage CKD on brain health warrant further investigation. This study aimed to explore the association between estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), a measure of how well the kidneys filter toxins and waste from the blood, and white matter hyperintensity (WMH), an MRI biomarker of cerebral small vessel disease linked to stroke and vascular cognitive impairment.
Methods: We performed a cross-sectional post-hoc analysis of the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) cohort at study visit 7 (2018-2019), including participants with WMH measured on MRI and eGFR estimated by the CKD-EPI. While eGFR had a standard distribution and did not require transformation, WMH was right-skewed so we standardized it to total intracranial volume and created a z-score for analysis (Figure 1).
Results: We included 661 individuals (mean age 81.1±4.7, 56.6% female, 22.1% Black) with a mean WMH burden of 20.0±16.8 mL. In a linear regression model adjusted for age, sex, race, hypertension, diabetes, prior stroke, current smoking, current alcohol use, systolic blood pressure, and APOE genotype, lower eGFR was significantly associated with higher WMH (β = -0.008; 95% CI -0.013, -0.003; p < 0.001) (Figure 2). Sensitivity analysis using the same adjustments but predicting the top tertile of WMH in a logistic regression and using a categorical approach to eGFR (<30, 30-60, 60-90, >90) confirmed the results of our primary analysis (Figure 3).
Discussion: We found a significant independent association between impaired kidney function and increased WMH burden, even in the early stages of CKD. These findings emphasize the importance of early CKD detection and management to preserve brain health. Future research should investigate the bidirectionality of this relationship, particularly in the context of acute ischemic injury, focusing on the shared mechanisms of renal and neurovascular dysfunction to develop more effective prevention and therapeutic strategies aimed at reducing the burden of disease in our aging population.” (Littig, et al., 2025)
Of four graphics, this gives a synopsis of the eGFR rates more associated with changes in the White Matter of the brain:
Based on the graphic, without buying the full article… it looks like to protect White Matter from ‘hyperintensity’ (* of cerebral small vessel disease), we want a Glomerular Filtration Rate around 60 or above. Damage risk is progressive as eGFR drops below 60 and Z Score of White Matter Hyperintensity worsens to a range of ~ .13 to .5 at an eGFR of 20. (Littig, et al., 2025)
* “…white matter hyperintensity (WMH), an MRI biomarker of cerebral small vessel disease linked to stroke and vascular cognitive impairment.” (Littig, et al., 2025)
It doesn’t sound good.
Other 2025 Abstracts in the latest email alert -
How had I set up this research alert? I don’ t remember…. but this batch ties in nicely with the soft tissue calcification and vitamin K2 theme:
Abstract WP388: Plasma Eicosanoids Are Associated with Incident Stroke Over Decades in Participants in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study
A Simpkins, F Norby, M Alotaibi, B Yu, M Zhang… - Stroke, 2025
Introduction: Eicosanoids (EIC) are lipid mediators that play a systemic role in
inflammation and, more specifically, in the brain, contribute to the process of
neurovascular coupling. Though EICs have been associated with immediate stroke …
Abstract WP310: Midlife Vascular Risk Factors, Dementia, and Parkinson's Disease-Dementia in the Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Cohort
M Johri, V Morrill, D Okine, J Seemiller, K Sullivan… - Stroke, 2025
Background: Vascular risk factors, particularly in midlife, are associated with an
increased risk of dementia, and smoking has been inversely associated with
Parkinson's disease (PD) risk, but the role of these factors in PD-dementia (PDD) is …
Carotid Artery Tortuosity and Incidence of Ischemic Stroke: The Atherosclerosis Risk in Communities (ARIC) Study
C Jiang, M Caughey, Z Xu, Y Guan, E Sun… - Stroke, 2025
Introduction: Carotid artery tortuosity, characterized by abnormal vessel twisting, has been reported to be associated with various vascular pathologies and the presence of stroke. We aimed to evaluate the association between carotid artery tortuosity and …
Abstract TMP107: Midlife Vascular Risk Factors are Associated with Late-life Depression in the ARIC Study
S Kanetkar, R Gottesman, V Morrill, K Walker… - Stroke, 2025
Objective: Late-life vascular health and cerebrovascular disease have been
identified as potential risk factors for late-life depression (LLD). However, the impact of midlife vascular health, which is strongly linked with other aspects of brain …
Abstract WMP18: The Association between Cerebral Microbleed Patterns and Incident Dementia: The ARIC-Neurocognitive Study
R Vuong, V Morrill, J Graff-Radford, D Knopman… - Stroke, 2025
Background: Cerebral microbleeds (CMBs) are associated with incident dementia,
but the impact of specific CMB patterns is unclear. CMBs in lobar regions suggest
cerebral amyloid angiopathy (CAA), which is sometimes accompanied by superficial…
Disclaimer This information is being provided for educational purposes within the guidelines of Fair Use and is not intended to provide individual health care guidance.
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It’s always about the biome isn’t it!
Great article, thanks!