BACKGROUND: The inclining incidence of chronic kidney disease which has led to 
high mortality and immense medical burden over the past decades has become a 
distressing concern in epidemiology. Unfortunately, the number of biomarkers 
that allow the monitoring of chronic kidney disease (CKD) is limited. Neutrophil 
gelatinase-associated lipocalin (NGAL) is an emerging biomarker which has been 
shown to be able to diagnose kidney injuries.
METHODS: Eighty-one nondiabetic patients with chronic kidney disease, stage 2 to 
5, were recruited for this study, and 17 healthy volunteers with eGFR greater 
than 90 mL/minute/1.73m(2) were selected as the control group.
RESULTS: Our study demonstrated that the pNGAL level is elevated during CKD, and 
the pNGL level has a strong correlation with the concentration of sCr and eGFR.
CONCLUSIONS: Plasma neutrophil gelatinase-associated lipocalin is a potent tool 
in the diagnosis of chronic kidney diseases and is shown to have high 
correlation with serum creatinine and estimated glomerular filtration rate.