Science AI Journal
Medicine · Research topic

Open research questions in Chronic Kidney Disease and Diabetes

365 unresolved questions extracted from the limitations and future-work sections of 992 Chronic Kidney Disease and Diabetes papers in our library. Each links back to the study that raised it.

What the literature leaves open

  • Current therapies do not completely halt the progressive decline of renal function in most DKD patients. There is a need to develop novel therapeutic strategies for DKD. The mechanism of Hederagenin in regulating renal senescence is not fully understood.

    Hederagenin attenuates renal senescence in diabetic kidney disease by inhibiting DNMT1-mediated Klotho DNA methylation · 2026 · DOI

  • The substantial heterogeneity among the included studies in terms of study design, participant characteristics, intervention or exposure types, and reported outcomes. The need to consider the certainty of evidence and the risk of bias in the included studies. The challenge of synthesizing evidence from both intervention and observational studies.

    Dietary patterns and physical activity in relation to renal and metabolic outcomes among older adults with type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney disease: a systematic review · 2026 · DOI

  • Longer follow-up is required to determine whether biomarker improvements translate into meaningful and sustained renal outcomes, - Further research is needed to evaluate the effectiveness of dietary and physical activity interventions, - The role of antioxidant nutrition in reducing oxidative burden in DN needs further investigation

    Dietary patterns and physical activity in relation to renal and metabolic outcomes among older adults with type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney disease: a systematic review · 2026 · DOI

  • Investigation of whether the findings observed in males extend to females, - Further research on the therapeutic potential of targeting GARP in CKD

    Kidney fibrosis is mediated by GARP-restricted TGF-β activation in fibroblasts · 2026 · DOI

  • The precise mechanisms controlling the activation of latent TGF-β have been largely overlooked in the context of kidney fibrosis. The role of GARP in kidney fibrosis is not well understood.

    Kidney fibrosis is mediated by GARP-restricted TGF-β activation in fibroblasts · 2026 · DOI

  • Lack of large-scale, prospective validation studies using hard renal endpoints, - Limited clinical adoption due to lack of harmonization of assay platforms and validation across diverse populations, - Need for accumulation of real-world evidence demonstrating improvement in patient reclassification and clinical outcomes

    Emerging technologies for early risk stratification and precision management of diabetic kidney disease: a multimodal framework integrating digital phenotypes and clinical biomarkers · 2026 · DOI

  • Large-scale, multi-center prospective studies with harmonized protocols, - Validation against hard clinical endpoints, - Generation of real-world evidence to demonstrate reclassification benefit and net clinical impact

    Emerging technologies for early risk stratification and precision management of diabetic kidney disease: a multimodal framework integrating digital phenotypes and clinical biomarkers · 2026 · DOI

  • Further study on the application of machine learning in diabetes diagnosis, - Exploration of other predictive factors for early DKD, - Investigation of the causal relationship between HbA1c and DKD

    Machine learning model based on routine blood and biochemical parameters for early diagnosis of diabetic kidney disease · 2026 · DOI

  • Further studies should investigate the impact of CKM syndrome on ADLs disability in different populations. Research should examine the effects of interventions aimed at reducing CKM syndrome on ADLs disability. Studies should explore the underlying mechanisms by which CKM syndrome affects ADLs disability.

    Associations between cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic syndrome and disability in activities of daily living: a nationwide longitudinal study among the middle-aged and older adults in China · 2025 · DOI

  • The impact of metabolic risk factors, CKD, and the cardiovascular system as a combined disease state on ADLs disability has not been explicitly discussed. Earlier studies have examined the impact of CVD, CKD, diabetes, and multimorbidity on ADLs disability, but not CKM syndrome.

    Associations between cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic syndrome and disability in activities of daily living: a nationwide longitudinal study among the middle-aged and older adults in China · 2025 · DOI

  • effective therapies that can halt or reverse the development of RF and CKD progression remain limited, - TCM's limitations need to be addressed through scientific research and technological innovation, - the quality control of TCM needs to be improved

    Traditional Chinese Medicine targeting the TGF-β/Smad signaling pathway as a potential therapeutic strategy for renal fibrosis · 2025 · DOI

  • elucidating mechanisms, - improving quality control, - validating clinical efficacy, - fostering international collaboration to promote the scientific and global application of TCM in modern medicine

    Traditional Chinese Medicine targeting the TGF-β/Smad signaling pathway as a potential therapeutic strategy for renal fibrosis · 2025 · DOI

  • Further studies are needed to establish the causal relationship between NHHR and macroalbuminuria. Research on the mechanisms underlying the association between NHHR and macroalbuminuria is needed. Studies examining the relationship between NHHR and macroalbuminuria in different populations are necessary.

    Association between non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol-to-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio and macroalbuminuria: evidence from NHANES 1999-2018 · 2025 · DOI

  • The relationship between NHHR and macroalbuminuria remains poorly understood. Prior studies have demonstrated the clinical value of NHHR across various diseases, but its association with macroalbuminuria is not well established.

    Association between non-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol-to-high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio and macroalbuminuria: evidence from NHANES 1999-2018 · 2025 · DOI

  • Further investigation of the genetic predisposition of DKD in patients with DR - Exploration of other potential risk factors for DKD in patients with DR - Validation of the nomogram model in larger and more diverse populations

    Development and validation of a risk prediction model for diabetic kidney disease in patients with diabetic retinopathy · 2025 · DOI

  • The lack of a risk prediction model for diabetic kidney disease in patients with diabetic retinopathy. The need to identify risk factors for combining diabetic kidney disease in type 2 diabetes mellitus patients with pre-existing diabetic retinopathy.

    Development and validation of a risk prediction model for diabetic kidney disease in patients with diabetic retinopathy · 2025 · DOI

  • The effects of the estrogen-estrogen receptor system on renal tubular injury under diabetic conditions are not well characterized. The molecular mechanisms underlying DKD are not fully understood. Current clinical drugs for treating DKD have limited efficacy.

    ER-α36 prevents high glucose-induced cellular senescence and apoptosis in renal tubular cell · 2025 · DOI

  • The study used a cross-sectional design, - The study had a limited sample size of 437 elderly inpatients, - The study did not explore the causal relationships between METS-IR, CCR, and CMM

    Cardiometabolic multimorbidity in relation to the metabolic score for insulin resistance and creatinine-to-cystatin C ratio in a middle-aged and aged population · 2025 · DOI

  • Further studies are needed to explore the causal relationships between METS-IR, CCR, and CMM, - Longitudinal studies are required to investigate the dynamic relationships between METS-IR, CCR, and CMM, - Studies with larger sample sizes are needed to validate the findings

    Cardiometabolic multimorbidity in relation to the metabolic score for insulin resistance and creatinine-to-cystatin C ratio in a middle-aged and aged population · 2025 · DOI

  • Understanding the complex crosstalk between GECs and neighboring cells. Identifying therapeutic strategies that effectively target endothelial dysfunction in DKD. The challenges are primarily related to the complexity of the disease and the need for further research.

    Specificity of endothelial cells in endothelial dysfunction of diabetic kidney disease and their crosstalk with neighboring cells: an updated review · 2025 · DOI

  • The distinct contribution of GECs to endothelial dysfunction and their crosstalk with neighboring cells is poorly defined. There is a need for an updated understanding of the mechanisms by which GECs lead to endothelial dysfunction in DKD.

    Specificity of endothelial cells in endothelial dysfunction of diabetic kidney disease and their crosstalk with neighboring cells: an updated review · 2025 · DOI

  • There is a need to identify reliable biomarkers that can predict the onset and progression of CKM syndrome. The relationship between NHHR and CKM syndrome is not well understood. There is a lack of studies exploring the relationship between NHHR and CKM syndrome in a large and diverse population.

    Association between non-highdensity lipoprotein cholesterol to high-density lipoprotein cholesterol ratio and cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic syndrome: evidence from NHANES 2001–2018 · 2025 · DOI

  • The relationships causing imbalance between metabolic disorders, cardiovascular diseases, and kidney diseases in CKM have not been fully evaluated. Emerging biomarkers have not been fully assessed for their CKM predictive value.

    Machine learning with decision curve analysis evaluates nutritional metabolic biomarkers for cardiovascular-kidney-metabolic risk: an NHANES analysis · 2025 · DOI

  • The study identifies challenges in early identification and risk stratification of diabetic kidney disease. It notes the complexity of metabolic dysregulation and renal impairment. The paper acknowledges the need for new biomarkers to improve diagnosis and risk assessment of diabetic kidney disease.

    Diagnostic efficacy of remnant cholesterol inflammatory index in diabetic kidney disease: machine learning approaches · 2025 · DOI

  • The study used a cross-sectional design, - Missing covariate data were imputed using the 'na.roughfix' function, - The study relied on self-reported diagnoses and questionnaire data, - The analysis was limited to participants in the NHANES 2015-2020 survey

    Diagnostic efficacy of remnant cholesterol inflammatory index in diabetic kidney disease: machine learning approaches · 2025 · DOI

Most-cited papers in Chronic Kidney Disease and Diabetes

Most recent work

Find a gap in your own Chronic Kidney Disease and Diabetes sub-topic

This page shows what the Chronic Kidney Disease and Diabetes literature already flags as unresolved. To narrow it to your specific question, run the guided finder — it searches the gap library on demand and checks candidates against 250M+ OpenAlex works.

Open the Research Gap Finder →

Related topics in Medicine

Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare and Education
2,044 open questions
Substance Abuse Treatment and Outcomes
1,964 open questions
Smoking Behavior and Cessation
990 open questions
Dementia and Cognitive Impairment Research
974 open questions
Innovations in Medical Education
960 open questions
Physical Activity and Health
923 open questions
Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder
839 open questions
Schizophrenia research and treatment
709 open questions
365 open questions have been extracted from the limitations and future-work passages of 992 Chronic Kidney Disease and Diabetes papers in our library. Each one below links back to the study that raised it, so you can read the original claim in context.

Tools for your next paper

Gaps & Literature SearchFind open questions in any field — 120,000+ open gaps mined from our own library.Pre-CheckIs your paper ready? A Tier 1–5 acceptance probability in seconds.Journal FinderA ranked shortlist of target journals from a 17,500-venue index.Duplicate Publication CheckerCheck prior-publication & salami-slicing risk across 8 sources.Citation GeneratorFreeA DOI or title → APA, MLA, Vancouver, Chicago, BibTeX, RIS. No signup.Graphical Abstract MakerFreeTurn your findings into a colorblind-safe graphical abstract.

Compare the category — Honest roundups of the AI research tools, ours listed alongside the alternatives.

Command palette

Jump anywhere, run any action.