Zepeda-Orozco, MD, awarded two NIH R01s
Examining renal repair in cisplatin-induced kidney toxicity and radiopharmaceuticals used in theranostic treatments
Diana Zepeda-Orozco, is a clinical assistant professor of Pediatrics at The Ohio State University College of Medicine. She’s also a principal investigator and the associate division director of Research in the Kidney and Urinary Tract Center in the Abigail Wexner Research Institute at Nationwide Children’s Hospital. In the Zepeda-Orozco Lab, Dr. Zepeda-Orozco and her team focus on understanding the role of mitochondrial dysfunction and oxidative stress in progressive kidney injury.
She was recently awarded two R01 grants from the National Institutes of Health for two separate projects:
Targeting Tubular Mitochondrial Superoxide Dismutation in Cisplatin Renal Repair will examine novel experimental clinical trial designs in the use of the chemotherapy drug cisplatin, which can reduce cisplatin-induced kidney toxicity.
Optimizing Theranostic Dosimetry and Kidney Biomarkers for Alpha-Emitter Radioligand Therapy in Neuroendocrine Tumors will examine alpha-emitter radioligand therapy (α-RLT), a potent anti-tumor treatment, which has the potential to reduce kidney toxicity sustained in beta-emitter radiopharmaceuticals.
“Integrating novel diagnostic and nephroprotective therapies to enhance tumor response while minimizing acute and long-term kidney damage is crucial,” Dr. Zepeda-Orzco says. “These approaches could pave the way for more effective clinical trials, ultimately improving patient survival and quality of life."
Cisplatin has been used as a cancer chemotherapy therapy for decades, yet its use is constrained by its tie to ensuring nephrotoxicity. A deeper understanding of biochemical pathways and metabolic conversions can facilitate risk-stratification strategies for future clinical trial design. The study has the potential to translate new knowledge into novel diagnostic and therapeutic approaches to promote renal repair in cisplatin-induced kidney toxicity.
The examination of α-RLT will focus on a study examination of the somatostatin subtype 2 receptor which is expressed in 80-100% of neuroendocrine tumors (NETs). If successful, Dr. Zepeda-Orzco says the findings and subsequent advances could be transferable to a broad range of α-RLTs, not only for pancreatic NETs and neuroblastoma, but also for prostate, breast, melanomas and other difficult-to-treat cancers amenable to α-RLT.
