The renal system consists of the kidneys, the bladder, the ureters and the urethra. These four components work together toward their primary goal, i.e. to filter the blood by removing all the waste products, which are ultimately excreted with the urine, and keeping all the components that are going to be used by the whole organism to perform its different functions.
The kidneys are critical organs because they maintain homeostasis in the body by regulating acid-base balance, the concentration of electrolytes, and water balance contributing to the long-term control of blood pressure. The kidneys also secrete hormones related to red blood cells production and healthy bone mass and structure. Impairment of kidney function, independent of the duration of the insult, may result in a very serious and possibly fatal disruption of homeostasis in the body.
Although, the primary function of the renal system is the same in both females and males, there are noted sex differences at the anatomical, cellular and molecular level that eventually lead to physiological dissimilarities between the male and female renal systems. As a result, there are sex differences in many renal conditions. For example, men are more likely to reach kidney failure sooner than women. The reasons for these sex and gender differences are not clearly understood and may impact on the choice of drug treatment. In this special edition, we will discuss the many different aspects leading to kidney failure in men and women.
This Research Topic welcomes basic, translational, clinical, and applied research to improve our understanding of sex differences in renal physiology. Potential areas of interest may include, but are not limited to:
- Expanding trilogy of sex differences in kidney homeostasis: (a) the influence in the homeostasis related hormones composition, polymorphism, and mechanism of action; (b) solute and water handling; (c) gut microbiota.
- Sex chromosomes and kidney function: a new open way to study sex differences.
- Recent insights on sex differences and kidney aging.
- The impact of sex hormones on renal function.
- Renal adaptations to pregnancy and the complex relationship between pregnancy and renal disease.
- Sex differences in immune activation in renal disease.
- Contribution of the central and sympathetic nervous systems to sex differences in the regulation of renal function
- Insights on the development of precision medicine
- Renal problems X transgender
- Sex differences in the interaction between nutrition and renal function
We welcome the submission of different article types to this collection, especially reviews, mini-reviews, and original research papers. For a complete list of article types that can be considered in the Renal and Epithelial Physiology section, please follow
this linkEven though abstract submission is not mandatory, we encourage all interested researchers to submit an abstract before submitting their manuscript. Abstracts do not have to coincide with the final abstract of the manuscripts.