SGLT2 and SGLT1 inhibitors suppress the activities of the RVLM neurons in newborn Wistar rats.

Hypertension is well-known to often coexist with diabetes mellitus (DM) in humans. Treatment with sodium-glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors has been shown to decrease both the blood glucose and the blood pressure (BP) in such patients. Some reports show that SGLT2 inhibitors improve the BP by decreasing the activities of the sympathetic nervous system.

PEPITEM/Cadherin 15 Axis Inhibits T Lymphocyte Infiltration and Glomerulonephritis in a Mouse Model of Systemic Lupus Erythematosus.

Control of lymphocyte infiltration in kidney is a potential therapeutic strategy for lupus nephritis, considering that control of lymphocyte migration by sphingosine 1 phosphate has been implicated in inflammation-related pathology. The peptide inhibitor of the transendothelial migration (PEPITEM)/cadherin (CDH) 15 axis was recently reported to promote sphingosine 1 phosphate secretion. In this study, we investigated whether CDH15 is expressed in the kidney of MRL/lpr mice and whether lymphocyte infiltration is suppressed by exogenously administered PEPITEM.

Serial Manifestation of Acute Kidney Injury and Nephrotic Syndrome in a Patient with TAFRO Syndrome.

A 76-year-old woman suddenly developed anasarca and a fever, and an examination revealed thrombocytopenia, reticulin fibrosis, and acute kidney injury, yielding the diagnosis of thrombocytopenia, anasarca, fever, reticulin fibrosis, organomegaly (TAFRO) syndrome. Renal replacement therapy and steroid treatment were soon started. Her proteinuria was minor at first; however, once the kidney function improved, nephrotic syndrome occurred.

Erythropoietin, a putative neurotransmitter during hypoxia, is produced in RVLM neurons and activates them in neonatal Wistar rats.

Recent studies indicate that erythropoietin (EPO) is present in many areas of the brain and is active in the restoration of impaired neurons. In this study, we examined the presence of EPO and its role in bulbospinal neurons in the rostral ventrolateral medulla (RVLM). Hypoxia is often accompanied by a high blood pressure (BP).

Renoprotective effects of a dipeptidyl peptidase 4 inhibitor in a mouse model of progressive renal fibrosis.

Although the effects of dipeptidyl peptidase 4 (DPP-4) inhibitors beyond their hypoglycemic action have been reported, whether these inhibitors have renoprotective effects in nondiabetic chronic kidney disease (CKD) is unclear. We examined the therapeutic effects of DPP-4 inhibition in mice with unilateral ureteral obstruction (UUO), a nondiabetic model of progressive renal fibrosis. After UUO surgery, mice were administered either the DPP-4 inhibitor alogliptin or a vehicle by oral gavage once a day for 10 days.

Direct effects of glucose, insulin, GLP-1, and GIP on bulbospinal neurons in the rostral ventrolateral medulla in neonatal wistar rats.

Although patients with diabetes mellitus (DM) often exhibit hypertension, the mechanisms responsible for this correlation are not well known. We hypothesized that the bulbospinal neurons in the rostral ventrolateral medulla (RVLM) are affected by the levels of glucose, insulin, or incretins (glucagon like peptide-1 [GLP-1] or glucose-dependent insulinotropic peptide [GIP]) in patients with DM. To investigate whether RVLM neurons are activated by glucose, insulin, GLP-1, or GIP, we examined changes in the membrane potentials of bulbospinal RVLM neurons using whole-cell patch-clamp technique during superfusion with various levels of glucose or these hormones in neonatal Wistar rats.

Role of tubulointerstitial plasmin in the progression of IgA nephropathy.

Background: Plasmin has recently been reported to be associated with renal fibrosis in experimental models, but its role in human renal diseases is unclear.

Methods: Fifty-seven patients with IgA nephropathy (IgAN) were evaluated retrospectively. Plasmin in their renal biopsy tissues was assessed by in situ zymography using a plasmin-sensitive synthetic peptide, and the relationships between patients' histologic or clinical parameters and their renal plasmin activity [assessed semiquantitatively by calculating the positively stained percentage of the total tubulointerstitial (TI) area] were evaluated.