title: Renal expression of a transforming growth factor-alpha transgene accelerates the progression of inherited, slowly progressive polycystic kidney disease in the mouse.
abstract: Polycystic kidney disease (PKD) is a prevalent inherited disease in human beings. The pathogenesis of PKD is as yet unclear. The epidermal growth factor family of proteins has been implicated in PKD based largely on in vitro data. To determine whether these growth factors contribute to the progression of inherited PKD in vivo, we crossed mice with a transgene for human transforming growth factor-alpha (TGF-alpha, a member of the epidermal growth factor (EGF) family) and mice with the pcy gene (which causes a slowly progressive form of PKD very similar to human autosomal dominant PKD). Renal expression of the TGF-alpha transgene in cystic mice (homozygous for the pcy gene) accelerated the development of PKD as shown by an increased kidney weight as a percent of body weight and an increased volume density of renal cysts at 8.5 weeks of age. However, renal expression of the TGF-alpha transgene did not appear to precociously initiate cyst development (at 6.5 weeks), nor did it cause an increase in the final degree of renal enlargement (at 29 weeks). Thus TGF-alpha accelerated the enlargement of cysts once initiated. At 8.5 weeks of age, renal expression of the TGF-alpha mRNA correlated positively with the amount of renal enlargement. At all time points studied, cystic kidneys exhibited increased expression of c-myc mRNA as compared with phenotypic normal kidneys, consistent with PKD being a hyperplastic disease of renal tubules. However, the renal expression of c-myc in 8.5 week cystic kidneys, with or without the transgene, did not correlate with the degree of renal enlargement. The results of this study suggest that EGF-like proteins may accelerate the progression of inherited renal cystic disease. However, the final degree of cystic change is dictated by the primary disease process rather than by the continued presence of growth factor.
authors.affiliation: Department of Anatomy and Cell Biology, Kansas University Kidney and Urologic Research Center, University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City 66160-7400, USA.
authors.forename: V H
authors.initials: VH
authors.lastname: Gattone
authors.forename: K A
authors.initials: KA
authors.lastname: Kuenstler
authors.forename: G W
authors.initials: GW
authors.lastname: Lindemann
authors.forename: X
authors.initials: X
authors.lastname: Lu
authors.forename: B D
authors.initials: BD
authors.lastname: Cowley
authors.forename: C A
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Rankin
authors.forename: J P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Calvet
mesh_terms: D000375:Aging / Q000502:physiology; D000818:Animals; D003433:Crosses, Genetic; D018450:Disease Progression; D005260:Female; D016259:Genes, myc; D006801:Humans; D007668:Kidney / Q000378:metabolism* / Q000473:pathology; D008297:Male; D051379:Mice; D008811:Mice, Inbred DBA; D008817:Mice, Mutant Strains; D008822:Mice, Transgenic; D007690:Polycystic Kidney Diseases / Q000235:genetics / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology*; D016271:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-myc / Q000096:biosynthesis; D012333:RNA, Messenger / Q000032:analysis / Q000096:biosynthesis; D014158:Transcription, Genetic; D016211:Transforming Growth Factor alpha / Q000096:biosynthesis* / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D016271:Proto-Oncogene Proteins c-myc; D012333:RNA, Messenger; D016211:Transforming Growth Factor alpha