Aims: To determine whether urinary biomarkers of acute kidney injury can be used to monitor the progression of chronic kidney injury in a rat model of hypertension and obesity.

Materials & methods: A suite of novel urinary biomarkers were used to track the progression of kidney damage in SHROB and SHR-lean rats.

Results: Urinary albumin, NAG, clusterin, osteopontin, RPA-1 and fibrinogen levels were significantly elevated over time and were closely associated with the severity of histopathologically determined nephropathy in both SHROB and SHR-lean rats.

Conclusion: Urinary biomarkers, such as albumin, fibrinogen, NAG, clusterin, RPA-1 and osteopontin, may serve as useful tools to track the progression of chronic kidney disease associated with hypertension and obesity.