title: The renoprotective effect of bone marrow-derived endothelial progenitor cell transplantation on acute ischemia-reperfusion injury in rats.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To investigate the renoprotective effects of exogenous endothelial progenitor cells (EPCs) on acute renal ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury in rats.
  
  
  METHODS
  EPCs were collected by in vitro culture of mononuclear cells derived from rat bone marrow. The EPC labeling was performed using chloromethyl-benzamidodialkylcarbocyanine (CM-Dil). Sprague-Dawley rats were equally randomized into an I/R, an EPC, and a control group. We evaluated blood urea nitrogen (BUN) and serum creatinine (Scr), kidney morphology, apoptosis and microvessel density. EPC homing into I/R injured kidneys was observed using a fluorescence microscope.
  
  
  RESULTS
  After EPC transplantation, CM-Dil-labeled EPCs were noted at the corticomedullary junction of injured kidneys. The levels of BUN and Scr were markedly lower among the EPC than the I/R group (P < .05). The histopathologic score was higher in the I/R than the EPC group (P < .05). Apoptosis of tubular epithelial cells was substantially reduced among EPC-treated rats (P < .01). In addition, more CD34(+) microvessels were documented among the EPC than the other two groups (P < .01). The expression levels of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) were also increased greatly in the EPC group (P < .05).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Transplanted exogenous EPCs exert protective effects on renal function by maintaining the integrity of peritubular capillaries after I/R injury.
authors.affiliation: Department of Urology, Southeast University School of Medicine, Nanjing, China.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.forename: C-J
authors.initials: CJ
authors.lastname: Bo
authors.forename: R-P
authors.initials: RP
authors.lastname: Jia
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Liu
authors.forename: R
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: J
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Wu
authors.forename: Y-Z
authors.initials: YZ
authors.lastname: Ge
authors.forename: G-J
authors.initials: GJ
authors.lastname: Teng
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D018380:Hematopoietic Stem Cell Transplantation; D007668:Kidney / Q000503:physiopathology*; D008297:Male; D008856:Microscopy, Fluorescence; D051381:Rats; D017207:Rats, Sprague-Dawley; D015427:Reperfusion Injury / Q000517:prevention & control*; D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A / Q000378:metabolism
chemical_list: D042461:Vascular Endothelial Growth Factor A