To address whether the emergence of damage-associated PT cells is specific to IRI injury or appears in other cases of acute kidney injury, we investigated the co-expression of SOX9 and VCAM1 in models of toxic renal injury (aristolochic acid nephropathy, AAN) and obstructive renal injury (unilateral ureteral obstruction, UUO), which lead to severe fibrosis. This evidence concerns the gene SOX9 and Balkan nephropathy.