Neutrophil Gelatinase Associated Lipocalin-Ngal: An Emerging Biomarker for Acute Kidney Injury

The treatment of kidney disease poses a major challenge to the health care system and the global economy. Hence the detection and management of kidney diseases in the early, reversible and potentially treatable stages is of paramount importance. AKI is largely asymptomatic and establishing the diagnosis relies on functional biomarkers such as serial serum creatinine measurements. Unfortunately, serum creatinine is a delayed and unreliable indicator of AKI. Animal studies have identified interventions that can prevent and/ or treat AKI if identified early in the course of disease, even before the serum creatinine begins to rise. The paucity of early biomarkers has hampered our ability to translate these promising therapies to human AKI. Fortunately, understanding the early stress response of the kidney to acute injury has revealed a number of potential biomarkers. Neutrophil Gelatinase Associated Lipocalin (NGAL) is one among them. This paper highlights the role of NGAL as a biomarker of AKI.