Vascular smooth muscle function of renal glomerular and interlobar arteries predicts renal damage in rats

Vavrinec P, Henning RH, Goris M, Vavrincova-Yaghi D, Buikema H, van Dokkum RP. Vascular smooth muscle function of renal glomerular and interlobar arteries predicts renal damage in rats. Am J Physiol Renal Physiol 303: F1187-F1195, 2012. First published July 11, 2012; doi:10.1152/ajprenal.00653.2011.-Previously, it was shown that individuals with good baseline (a priori) endothelial function in isolated (in vitro) renal arteries developed less renal damage after 5/6 nephrectomy (5/6Nx; Gschwend S, Buikema H, Navis G, Henning RH, de Zeeuw D, van Dokkum RP. J Am Soc Nephrol 13: 2909-2915, 2002). In this study, we investigated whether preexisting glomerular vascular integrity predicts subsequent renal damage after 5/6Nx, using in vivo intravital microscopy and in vitro myogenic constriction of small renal arteries. Moreover, we aimed to elucidate the role of renal ANG II type 1 receptor (AT1R) expression in this model. Anesthetized rats underwent intravital microscopy to visualize constriction to ANG II of glomerular afferent and efferent arterioles, with continuous measurement of blood pressure, heart rate, and renal blood flow. Thereafter, 5/6Nx was performed, interlobar arteries were isolated from the extirpated kidney, and myogenic constriction was assessed in a perfused vessel setup. Blood pressure and proteinuria were assessed weekly for 12 wk, and focal glomerulosclerosis (FGS) was determined at the end of study. Relative expression AT1R in the kidney cortex obtained at 5/6Nx was determined by PCR. Infusion of ANG II induced significant constriction of both afferent and efferent glomerular arterioles, which strongly positively correlated with proteinuria and FGS at 12 wk after 5/6Nx. Furthermore, in vitro measured myogenic constriction of small renal arteries negatively correlated with proteinuria 12 wk after 5/6Nx. Moreover, in vivo vascular reactivity negatively correlated with in vitro reactivity. Additionally, relative expression of AT1R positively correlated with responses of glomerular arterioles and with markers of renal damage. Both in vivo afferent and efferent responses to ANG II and in vitro myogenic constriction of small renal arteries in the healthy rat predict the severity of renal damage induced by 5/6Nx. This vascular responsiveness is highly dependent on AT1R expression. Intraorgan vascular integrity may provide a useful tool to guide the prevention and treatment of renal end-organ damage

Local gene therapy with indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase protects against development of transplant vasculopathy in chronic kidney transplant dysfunction

Chronic transplant dysfunction (CTD) is the primary cause of late allograft loss in kidney transplantation. Indoleamine 2,3-dioxygenase (IDO) is involved in fetomaternal tolerance and IDO gene therapy inhibits acute rejection following kidney transplantation. The aim of this study is to investigate whether gene therapy with IDO is able to attenuate CTD. Transplantation was performed in a rat Dark-Agouti to Wistar-Furth CTD model. Donor kidneys were incubated either with an adenovirus carrying IDO gene, a control adenovirus or saline. During the first 10 days recipients received low-dose cyclosporine. Body weight, blood pressure, serum creatinine and proteinuria were measured every 2 weeks. Rats were killed after 12 weeks. IDO had a striking beneficial effect on transplant vasculopathy at week 12. It also significantly improved body weight gain; it reduced blood pressure and decreased proteinuria during the follow-up. However, it did not affect the kidney function. In addition, IDO therapy significantly decreased the number of graft-infiltrating macrophages at week 12. The messenger RNA levels of forkhead box p3 and transforming grow factor-beta were elevated in the IDO treated group at week 12. Here we show for first time a clear beneficial effect of local IDO gene therapy especially on transplant vasculopathy in a rat model of renal CTD