Diabetic nephropathy: A global and growing threat

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Role of bone morphogenetic protein-7 in renal fibrosis

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Cancer risk in patients with diabetic nephropathy: a retrospective cohort study in Hong Kong

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Conversion to mammalian target of rapamycin inhibitors in kidney transplant recipients with de novo cancers

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Toll-like receptor 4 mediates tubular inflammation in diabetic nephropathy

published_or_final_versionThe 15th Medical Research Conference, Department of Medicine, The University of Hong Kong, Queen Mary Hospital, Hong Kong, 16 January 2010. In Hong Kong Medical Journal, 2010, v. 16 n. 1, suppl. 1, p. 39, abstract no. 6

Tissue kallikrein mediates pro-inflammatory pathways and activation of protease-activated receptor-4 in proximal tubular epithelial cells.

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Progressive outer retinal necrosis in a renal transplant recipient: a rare treatment success

Renal transplant recipients (RTRs) are subject to a variety of opportunistic infections. We present a rare case of varicella zoster virus-derived progressive outer retinal necrosis in an RTR, who presented with painless visual blurring. This clinical entity heralds an extremely poor visual prognosis and is an important condition to consider in any immunocompromised host. Early diagnosis by aqueous fluid sampling and immediate institution of combined systemic and intravitreal antiviral therapy was successful in this individual.postprin

N-Acetyl-seryl-aspartyl-lysyl-proline Alleviates Renal Fibrosis Induced by Unilateral Ureteric Obstruction in BALB/C Mice

To expand the armamentarium of treatment for chronic kidney disease (CKD), we explored the utility of boosting endogenously synthesized N-acetyl-seryl-aspartyl-lysyl-proline (Ac-SDKP), which is augmented by inhibition of the angiotensin converting enzyme. Male BALB/c mice underwent unilateral ureteral ligation (UUO) or sham operation and received exogenously administered Ac-SDKP delivered via a subcutaneous osmotic minipump or Captopril treatment by oral gavage. Seven days after UUO, there were significant reductions in the expression of both collagen 1 and collagen 3 in kidneys treated with Ac-SDKP or Captopril, and there was a trend towards reductions in collagen IV, alpha-SMA, and MCP-1 versus control. However, no significant attenuation of interstitial injury or macrophage infiltration was observed. These findings are in contrary to observations in other models and underscore the fact that a longer treatment time frame may be required to yield anti-inflammatory effects in BALB/c mice treated with Ac-SDKP compared to untreated mice. Finding an effective treatment regimen for CKD requires fine-tuning of pharmacologic protocols.published_or_final_versio

Research on the allelopathic potential of wheat

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BMP7 reduces inflammation and oxidative stress in diabetic tubulopathy

Bone morphogenetic protein 7 (BMP7) has been reported to confer renoprotective effects in acute and chronic kidney disease models, but its potential role in Type 2 diabetic nephropathy remains unknown. In cultured human proximal tubular epithelial cells (PTECs), exposure to advanced glycation end-products (AGEs) induced overexpression of intercellular adhesion molecule 1 (ICAM1), monocyte chemoattractant protein 1 (MCP1), interleukin 8 (IL-8) and interleukin 6 (IL-6), involving activation of p44/42 and p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) signalling. BMP7 dose-dependently attenuated AGE-induced up-regulation of ICAM1, MCP1, IL-8 and IL-6 at both mRNA and protein levels. Moreover, BMP7 suppressed AGE-induced p38 and p44/42 MAPK phosphorylation and reactive oxygen species production in PTECs. Compared with vehicle control, uninephrectomized db/db mice treated with BMP7 for 8 weeks had significantly lower urinary albumin-to-creatinine ratio (3549±816.2 μg/mg compared with 8612±2037 μg/mg, P=0.036), blood urea nitrogen (33.26±1.09 mg/dl compared with 37.49±0.89 mg/dl, P=0.006), and renal cortical expression of ICAM1 and MCP1 at both gene and protein levels. In addition, BMP7-treated animals had significantly less severe tubular damage, interstitial inflammatory cell infiltration, renal cortical p38 and p44/42 phosphorylation and lipid peroxidation. Our results demonstrate that BMP7 attenuates tubular pro-inflammatory responses in diabetic kidney disease by suppressing oxidative stress and multiple inflammatory signalling pathways including p38 and p44/42 MAPK. Its potential application as a therapeutic molecule in diabetic nephropathy warrants further investigation.postprin