title: Bone morphogenetic protein-7 improves renal fibrosis and accelerates the return of renal function.
abstract: A prevention protocol has demonstrated that bone morphogenetic protein-7 (BMP-7) blunted the development of fibrosis in a rat model of unilateral ureteral obstruction. This prevention protocol also preserved, to an extent, renal function. The prevention protocol was extended and a treatment protocol used to examine if BMP-7 was beneficial at limiting fibrosis of the kidney when the BMP-7 was administered during the progression of fibrotic disease. Animals were distributed into four groups. Group 1 received vehicle, group 2 received enalapril (12.5 mg/kg body wt per d), group 3 received BMP-7 (50 or 300 microg/kg), and group 4 received both the enalapril and the high dose of BMP-7. Rats underwent reversible unilateral ureteral obstruction for 3 d, after which the obstruction was relieved. In the treatment protocol, 300 microg/kg BMP-7 was given after the release of obstruction. Seven days after release of the obstruction and the onset of treatment glomerular filtration rate (GFR), renal blood flow, and various histologic indexes of fibrosis were determined. On a consistent basis, BMP-7 treatment alone was found to be slightly but significantly (P < 0.04 to 0.007) better than enalapril alone or in combination with enalapril at decreasing interstitial volume or tubule atrophy. BMP-7 treatment was slightly but not significantly better (P < 0.09) than enalapril at restoring GFR in the prevention protocol. Treatment with BMP-7 significantly boosted GFR (P < 0.01) above that seen with vehicle treatment. These results suggest that BMP-7 treatment is capable of blunting the progression of fibrotic disease and of decreasing interstitial volume. Importantly, a return of renal function is accelerated by BMP-7 treatment. These results suggest that administration of BMP-7 may be an effective treatment to restore or preserve renal histology and renal function in this experimental model of renal disease.
authors.affiliation: Renal Division, Department of Internal Medicine, Washington University School of Medicine at Barnes-Jewish Hospital, St. Louis, Missouri 63110-1092, USA.
authors.forename: Jeremiah
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Morrissey
authors.forename: Keith
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Hruska
authors.forename: Guangjie
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Guo
authors.forename: Song
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Wang
authors.forename: Qing
authors.initials: Q
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: Saulo
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Klahr
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D055419:Bone Morphogenetic Protein 7; D019485:Bone Morphogenetic Proteins / Q000627:therapeutic use*; D024141:Collagen Type IV / Q000378:metabolism; D005355:Fibrosis; D007668:Kidney / Q000187:drug effects / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology*; D007674:Kidney Diseases / Q000188:drug therapy* / Q000209:etiology / Q000473:pathology* / Q000503:physiopathology; D007677:Kidney Function Tests; D007684:Kidney Tubules / Q000473:pathology; D011315:Preventive Medicine / Q000379:methods; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D020127:Recovery of Function; D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta; D014517:Ureteral Obstruction / Q000150:complications
chemical_list: C525821:Bmp7 protein, rat; D055419:Bone Morphogenetic Protein 7; D019485:Bone Morphogenetic Proteins; D024141:Collagen Type IV; D016212:Transforming Growth Factor beta