Paricalcitol prevents MAPK pathway activation and inflammation in adriamycin-induced kidney injury in rats.

Background: Activation of the mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) pathway induces uncontrolled cell proliferation in response to inflammatory stimuli. Adriamycin (ADR)-induced nephropathy (ADRN) in rats triggers MAPK activation and pro-inflammatory mechanisms by increasing cytokine secretion, similar to chronic kidney disease (CKD). Activation of the vitamin D receptor (VDR) plays a crucial role in suppressing the expression of inflammatory markers in the kidney and may contribute to reducing cellular proliferation.

Pharmacological activation of nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor-2 prevents hyperglycemia-induced renal oxidative damage: Possible involvement of O-GlcNAcylation.

Hyperglycemia is a major risk factor for kidney diseases. Oxidative stress, caused by reactive oxygen species, is a key factor in the development of kidney abnormalities related to hyperglycemia. The nuclear factor erythroid 2-related factor-2 (Nrf2) plays a crucial role in defending cells against oxidative stress by activating genes that produce antioxidants.

Challenges in the care of children born to mothers diagnosed with COVID-19 during the pandemic.

Objective: To understand the challenges in the care of children born to mothers with COVID-19 during the pandemic.

Method: Qualitative research, conducted from November 2020 to May 2021, in two public maternity hospitals, with women who had children during the first wave of the pandemic, diagnosed with COVID-19 during pregnancy and/or childbirth. There were nineteen semi-structured interviews with thematic analysis.

Maternal health during the COVID-19 pandemic: Experiences of health workers in three Brazilian municipalities.

Objective: To analyze the experiences of maternal health workers in three Brazilian cities, located in the Northeast (São Luís), Southeast (Niterói), and South (Pelotas) regions during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: Qualitative research carried out between December 2020 and February 2021. Interviews were conducted, in person or remotely, with 30 health workers, doctors and nurses, working in maternity hospitals of different degrees of complexity.

Vitamin D deficiency contributes to the diabetic kidney disease progression via increase ZEB1/ZEB2 expressions.

Background: Diabetic kidney disease (DKD) remains one of the main causes of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) and mortality in diabetic patients worldwide. Vitamin D deficiency (VitDD) is one of the main consequences of different chronic kidney disease (CKD) types and is associated with rapid progression to ESRD. Nevertheless, the mechanisms that lead to this process are poorly understood.

Experiences of women in prenatal, childbirth, and postpartum care during the COVID-19 pandemic in selected cities in Brazil: The resignification of the experience of pregnancy and giving birth.

The COVID-19 pandemic has impacted public and private health systems around the world, impairing good practices in women's health care. However, little is known about the experiences, knowledge, and feelings of Brazilian women in this period. The objective was to analyze the experiences of women, seen at maternity hospitals accredited by the Brazilian Unified Health System (SUS, acronym in Portuguese), regarding health care during pregnancy, childbirth, and postpartum periods, their interpersonal relationships, and perceptions and feelings about the pandemic.

Paricalcitol Improves the Angiopoietin/Tie-2 and VEGF/VEGFR2 Signaling Pathways in Adriamycin-Induced Nephropathy.

Renal endothelial cell (EC) injury and microvascular dysfunction contribute to chronic kidney disease (CKD). In recent years, increasing evidence has suggested that EC undergoes an endothelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EndoMT), which might promote fibrosis. Adriamycin (ADR) induces glomerular endothelial dysfunction, which leads to progressive proteinuria in rodents.

Calcitriol Reduces the Inflammation, Endothelial Damage and Oxidative Stress in AKI Caused by Cisplatin.

Cisplatin treatment is one of the most commonly used treatments for patients with cancer. However, thirty percent of patients treated with cisplatin develop acute kidney injury (AKI). Several studies have demonstrated the effect of bioactive vitamin D or calcitriol on the inflammatory process and endothelial injury, essential events that contribute to changes in renal function and structure caused by cisplatin (CP).

Alterations in Kidney Structures Caused by Age Vary According to Sex and Dehydration Condition.

Aging is a complex biological process, resulting in gradual and progressive decline in structure and function in many organ systems. Our objective is to determine if structural changes produced by aging vary with sex in a stressful situation such as dehydration. The expression of mRNA in the renal cortex, α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), and fibronectin was evaluated in male and female rats, aged 3 and 18 months, submitted and not submitted to water deprivation (WD) for 48 h, respectively.

Obesity-like metabolic effects of high-carbohydrate or high-fat diets consumption in metabolic and renal functions.

Present study investigated which diet, high-carbohydrate (HCD) or high-fat (HFD), most effectively induces classical characteristics of obesity in mice. Mice were fed commercial chow (control), an HCD, or an HFD for 12weeks. HFD and HCD increased body weight, fat mass, and glycaemia, whereas the HFD augmented insulinemia.

Acute kidney injury induced by glycerol is worsened by orchiectomy and attenuated by testosterone replacement.

Although several studies have demonstrated that the male gender represents an independent risk factor for renal disease, evidence shows that androgens exert renal protective actions. The findings are controversial and no studies have evaluated the effects of orchiectomy and testosterone replacement on glycerol-induced renal injury. Male Wistar rats were submitted to orchiectomy or sham surgery and divided into four groups: SC, sham control rats injected with NaCl; SG, sham rats injected with glycerol; OG, orchiectomized rats injected with glycerol; OGT, orchiectomized rats injected with glycerol and testosterone.

Effects of endogenous HS production inhibition on the homeostatic responses induced by acute high-salt diet consumption.

The gaseous modulator hydrogen sulfide (HS) is synthesized, among other routes, by the action of cystathionine-γ-lyase (CSE) and importantly participates in body fluid homeostasis. Therefore, the present study aimed to evaluate the participation of HS in behavioral, renal and neuroendocrine homeostatic responses triggered by the acute consumption of a high Na diet. After habituation, adult male Wistar rats were randomly distributed and maintained for seven days on a control [CD (0.

Neonatal hyperoxia: effects on nephrogenesis and the key role of klotho as an antioxidant factor.

A congenital or programmed reduction in glomerular number increases the susceptibility to hypertension and kidney injury in adulthood thus, premature birth or low birth weight, leading to a low glomerular endowment, can be associated with these two diseases. Renal morphogenesis is sensitive to hypoxia which is a physiological trigger for the expression of vascular endothelial growth factor. On the other hand, hyperoxia increases oxidative stress and adversely affects glomerular and tubular development, and is associated with a substantial reduction of renal klotho expression in adulthood.

Effect of Calcitriol on the Renal Microvasculature Differentiation Disturbances Induced by AT Blockade During Nephrogenesis in Rats.

Alterations in the renal vasculature during fetal programming can cause disturbances in renal structure and function that persist into adulthood. Calcitriol can affect cellular differentiation and proliferation, and promote endothelial cell maintenance, each of which is a key event in nephrogenesis. Calcitriol is a negative endocrine regulator of the renin gene.

Propargylglycine decreases neuro-immune interaction inducing pain response in temporomandibular joint inflammation model.

The mechanisms underlying temporomandibular disorders following orofacial pain remain unclear. Hydrogen sulfide (HS), a newly identified gasotransmitter, has been reported to modulate inflammation. Cystathionine γ-lyase (CSE) is responsible for the systemical production of HS, which exerts both pro- and antinociceptive effects through inflammation.

Increased hypothalamic hydrogen sulphide contributes to endotoxin tolerance by down-modulating PGE production.

Aim: Whereas some patients have important changes in body core temperature (Tb) during systemic inflammation, others maintain a normal Tb, which is intrinsically associated to immune paralysis. One classical model to study immune paralysis is the use of repeated administration of lipopolysaccharide (LPS), the so-called endotoxin tolerance. However, the neuroimmune mechanisms of endotoxin tolerance remain poorly understood.

When Less or More Isn't Enough: Renal Maldevelopment Arising From Disequilibrium in the Renin-Angiotensin System.

Environmental and nutritional factors during fetal and neonatal life can have long-lasting effects on renal functions and physiology and susceptibility to kidney disease in adulthood. All components of the renin-angiotensin system (RAS) are highly expressed in the kidneys during the period of renal development. The RAS plays a central role in the regulation of various cellular growth factors and stimulates adhesion molecules and cellular migration.

Protective effect of calcitriol on rhabdomyolysis-induced acute kidney injury in rats.

Glycerol injection in rats can lead to rhabdomyolysis, with the release of the intracellular muscle content to the extracellular compartment and acute kidney injury (AKI). Oxidative stress and the inflammatory processes contribute to the disturbances in renal function and structure observed in this model. This study evaluated the effect of calcitriol administration in AKI induced by rhabdomyolysis and its relationship with oxidative damage and inflammatory process.

Renal developmental disturbances and their long-term consequences in female pups from vitamin D-deficient mothers: involved mechanisms.

The mechanisms involved in kidney disturbances during development, induced by vitamin D3 deficiency in female rats, that persist into adulthood were evaluated in this study. Female offspring from mothers fed normal (control group, n=8) or vitamin D-deficient (Vit.D-, n=10) diets were used.

Oral administration of powdered dried rhizomes of Curcuma longa L. (turmeric, Zingiberaceae) is effective in the treatment of doxorubicin-induced kidney injury in rats.

Curcumin is a polyphenol present in the rhizomes of the species Curcuma longa L. ("turmeric," Zingiberaceae), which has been used for centuries as an anti-inflammatory. We aimed to evaluate the anti-inflammatory effects of C.

Previous Exercise Training Reduces Markers of Renal Oxidative Stress and Inflammation in Streptozotocin-Induced Diabetic Female Rats.

The aim of this study is to evaluate the effects of regular moderate exercise training initiated previously or after induction of diabetes mellitus on renal oxidative stress and inflammation in STZ-induced diabetic female rats. For this purpose, Wistar rats were divided into five groups: sedentary control (SC), trained control (TC), sedentary diabetic (SD), trained diabetic (TD), and previously trained diabetic (PTD). Only the PTD group was submitted to treadmill running for 4 weeks previously to DM induction with streptozotocin (40 mg/kg, i.

Previous Exercise Effects in Cisplatin-Induced Renal Lesions in Rats.

Background/aims: Physical training has beneficial effects on endothelial function and can influence the regeneration of the endothelial cell. We investigated the effect of physical training on cisplatin (CP)-induced acute kidney injury and assessed the impact of training on endothelial structure and function, and on the inflammatory processes in rats.

Methods: We injected male Wistar rats subjected to previous physical training in treadmill running (trained, TR) or not (sedentary, SED) with CP (5 mg/kg) (TR+CP and SED+CP groups, respectively).

Calcitriol reduces kidney development disorders in rats provoked by losartan administration during lactation.

Calcitriol has important effects on cellular differentiation and proliferation, as well as on the regulation of the renin gene. Disturbances in renal development can be observed in rats exposed to angiotensin II (AngII) antagonists during lactation period. The lack of tubular differentiation in losartan-treated rats can affect calcitriol uptake.

Effect of Physical Exercise on the Febrigenic Signaling is Modulated by Preoptic Hydrogen Sulfide Production.

We tested the hypothesis that the neuromodulator hydrogen sulfide (H2S) in the preoptic area (POA) of the hypothalamus modulates the febrigenic signaling differently in sedentary and trained rats. Besides H2S production rate and protein expressions of H2S-related synthases cystathionine β-synthase (CBS), 3-mercaptopyruvate sulfurtransferase (3-MPST) and cystathionine γ-lyase (CSE) in the POA, we also measured deep body temperature (Tb), circulating plasma levels of cytokines and corticosterone in an animal model of systemic inflammation. Rats run on a treadmill before receiving an intraperitoneal injection of lipopolysaccharide (LPS, 100 μg/kg) or saline.