Selected Publications

Childhood Cancer and the Risk of ESKD

Calderon-Margalit & Pleniceanu O, et al.

Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (2021)

In this paper, we explored the potential link between cancer during childhood and kidney failure later on in life. Indeed, we conclusively showed that the result is an increased risk for suffering from end-stage kidney disease.

Successful Introduction of Human Renovascular Units into the Mammalian Kidney

Pleniceanu O, et al.

Journal of the American Society of Nephrology (2020)

In this paper, we used a combination of human kidney forming cells and vasculogenic stem cells to generate functional reno-vascular units in-vivo, showing for the first time that such a combination can be used to establish renal tubules supplied by donor-derived vessels

Renal lineage cells as a source for renal regeneration

Pleniceanu O, et al.

Pediatric Research (2018)

In this paper, we described how cells from the renal lineage, including both stem cells and non-stem cells, can be employed to regenerate damaged kidneys

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor gamma (PPARγ) is central to the initiation and propagation of human angiomyolipoma, suggesting its potential as a therapeutic target

Pleniceanu O et al.

EMBO Mol Med (2017)

This work tackles a unique kidney tumor called Angiomyolipoma (AML). We establish the first in-vivo model of human AML and use it to uncover PPARG as a key driver of AML growth. In addition, we show that targeting the PPARG pathways successfully limits tumor growth both in-vitro and in-vivo, meaning that it may be used in the future as a potential treatment for this tumor.