Expression of urokinase-type plasminogen activator receptor in the organs of rats with chronic kidney disease

JIN Yan-hua; ZHANG Yan-ning; WEI Bo-ying; SHAN Xiao-wei; ZHANG De-wei

doi:10.16048/j.issn.2095-5561.2024.04.02

Abstract：Objective To investigate the expression of soluble urokinase-type plasminogen activator receptor(suPAR)in the heart,brain and kidney of chronic kidney disease(CKD)rats.Methods Three methods were used to establish the rat CKD model,namely IgA nephropathy(IgAN)group(n=8),focal segmental glomerulosclerosis(FSGS)group(n=8),IgA nephropathy with focal segmental glomerulosclerosis(IgAN-FSGS)group(n=10),and control group(n=6).Serum suPAR levels were detected in each group,and the expressions of urokinase-type plasminogen activator receptor(uPAR)and plasminogen activator inhibitor 1(PAI-1)in kidney,heart and brain tissues were detected by immunohistochemistry and western blotting methods.Results A total of 26 rats were successfully modeled in this study,including 5 in the control group,8 in the IgAN group,5 in the FSGS group,and 8 in the IgAN-FSGS group.Compared with the control group,the serum creatinine of IgAN group,FSGS group and IgAN-FSGS group was significantly increased,and the difference was statistically significant(P＜0.05).Compared with the control group,the urinary protein of IgAN group,FSGS group and IgAN-FSGS group was increased,and the urinary protein of IgAN-FSGS group and FSGS group was significantly higher than that of control group,the difference was statistically significant(P＜0.05).Compared with the control group,the serum suPAR levels of the IgAN-FSGS and FSGS groups were significantly increased,the difference was statistically significant(P＜0.05).Immunohistochemistry staining showed that uPAR and PAI-1 were mainly expressed in the glomerulus,mainly in the capillary wall and podocytes of the glomerulus,and the strength trend was IgAN-FSGS group＞FSGS group＞IgAN group＞control group,while no significant expression was found in renal tubules and renal interstitial.There was no significant difference in uPAR and PAI-1 expression in the heart tissues of the four groups(P＞0.05).Compared with the control group,uPAR expression in brain tissue of IgAN group,FSGS group and IgAN-FSGS group was slightly increased,PAI-1 expression was slightly decreased,and pairwise comparison among groups showed no statistical significance(P＞0.05).There was no significant difference in the expression of PAI-1 in the brain tissues of the 4 groups(P＞0.05).The expression of uPAR and PAI-1 in the heart and brain of rats in 4 groups was weak.Conclusion PAI-1 and uPAR are highly expressed in the glomeruli of CKD rats,but not in the heart and brain.