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Thipboonchoo N, Fongsupa S, Sureram S, Sa-nguansak S, Kesornpun C, Kittakoop P, Soodvilai S. Altenusin, a fungal metabolite, alleviates TGF-β1-induced EMT in renal proximal tubular cells and renal fibrosis in unilateral ureteral obstruction. Heliyon 2024; 10:e24983. [PMID: 38318047 PMCID: PMC10839986 DOI: 10.1016/j.heliyon.2024.e24983] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/07/2023] [Revised: 01/17/2024] [Accepted: 01/17/2024] [Indexed: 02/07/2024] Open
Abstract
Renal fibrosis is a pathological feature of chronic kidney disease (CKD), progressing toward end-stage kidney disease (ESKD). The aim of this study is to investigate the therapeutic potential of altenusin, a farnesoid X receptor (FXR) agonist derived from fungi, on renal fibrosis. The effect of altenusin was determined (i) in vitro using the transforming growth factor β1 (TGF-β1)-induced epithelial to mesenchymal transition (EMT) of human renal proximal tubular cells and (ii) in vivo using mouse unilateral ureteral obstruction (UUO). The findings revealed that incubation of 10 ng/ml TGF-β1 promotes morphological change in RPTEC/TERT1 cells, a human renal proximal tubular cell line, from epithelial to fibroblast-like cells. TGF-β1 markedly increased EMT markers namely α-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA), fibronectin, and matrix metalloproteinase 9 (MMP-9), while decreased the epithelial marker E-cadherin. Co-incubation TGF-β1 with altenusin preserved the epithelial characteristics of the renal epithelial cells by antagonizing TGF-β/Smad signaling pathway, specifically a decreased phosphorylation of Smad2/3 with an increased level of Smad7. Interestingly, the antagonizing effect of altenusin does not require FXR activation. Moreover, altenusin could reverse TGF-β1-induced fibroblast-like cells to epithelial-like cells. Treatment on UUO mice with 30 mg/kg altenusin significantly reduced the expression of α-SMA, fibronectin, and collagen type 1A1 (COL1A1). The reduction in the renal fibrosis markers is correlated with the decreased phosphorylation of Smad2/3 levels but does not improve E-cadherin protein expression. Collectively, altenusin reduces EMT in human renal proximal tubular cells and renal fibrosis by antagonizing the TGF-β/Smad signaling pathway.
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Affiliation(s)
- Natechanok Thipboonchoo
- Research Center of Transport Protein for Medical Innovation, Department of Physiology, Faculty of Science, Mahidol University, Bangkok 10400, Thailand
| | - Somsak Fongsupa
- Department of Medical Technology, Faculty of Allied Health Science, Thammasat University Rangsit Campus, Thailand
| | - Sanya Sureram
- Chulabhorn Research Institute, Kamphaeng Phet 6 Road, Laksi, Bangkok 10210, Thailand
| | - Suliporn Sa-nguansak
- Chulabhorn Research Institute, Kamphaeng Phet 6 Road, Laksi, Bangkok 10210, Thailand
| | - Chatchai Kesornpun
- Chulabhorn Research Institute, Kamphaeng Phet 6 Road, Laksi, Bangkok 10210, Thailand
| | - Prasat Kittakoop
- Chulabhorn Research Institute, Kamphaeng Phet 6 Road, Laksi, Bangkok 10210, Thailand
- Chulabhorn Graduate Institute, Program in Chemical Sciences, Chulabhorn Royal Academy, Laksi, Bangkok 10210, Thailand
- Center of Excellence on Environmental Health and Toxicology (EHT), OPS, Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation, Bangkok 10400, Thailand
| | - Sunhapas Soodvilai
- Research Center of Transport Protein for Medical Innovation, Department of Physiology, Faculty of Science, Mahidol University, Bangkok 10400, Thailand
- Center of Excellence on Environmental Health and Toxicology (EHT), OPS, Ministry of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovation, Bangkok 10400, Thailand
- Excellent Center for Drug Discovery, Mahidol University, Bangkok 10400, Thailand
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