Purpose of EUTox

The European Society of Artificial Organs ( ESAO) decided to install  Work Groups in several areas of progress in the field of Artificial Organs, such as Artificial Liver, Heart Support, Apheresis and Adsorption, Tissue Engineering, Education and Uremic Toxins.

Starting in October 1999, the European Uremic Toxins (EUTox) Work Group was launched by three of the members (R.Vanholder, B.G.Stegmayr and U.Baurmeister). In September 2000, at the occasion of the 27th ESAO-meeting in Lausanne, the Work Group convened for its first meeting. EUTox is also a workgroup of the European Renal Association - Renal Dialysis and Transplantation Association ( ERA-EDTA).

In 2008, the Work Group is now composed of 24 European Research Insitutes involving biochemists and clinicians working in uremic toxicity. Apart from these members from academia, 8 scientists from leading industries in this area (Abbott, Amgen, Bayer HealthCare, Fresenius Medical Care, Gambro, Genzyme, Membrana and Roche) are involved. All members have been invited, based on their previous accomplishments and their current research and development activities in uremic toxicity and its therapies.

One of the first projects EUTox accomplished was to write a Joint Review about the main topic of interest of each member.  This has been followed by a number of projects such as the publication of a list of uremic toxins with their threshold concentrations for in vitro research, the development of a complete issue containing comprehensive reviews on all uremic solutes and joint research activities among the members.

Eleven statement and review publications were generated by the group as well as over 110 scientific papers were published to which at least two member groups of EUTox jointly contributed. An Uremic Toxins DATA BASE was established.