Nitric oxide protects against ischemic acute renal failure through the suppression of renal endothelin-1 overproduction.

To elucidate the role of nitric oxide in the pathogenesis of ischemic acute renal failure, we investigated the effects of FK409, a spontaneous nitric oxide donor, and N(G)-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester, a non-selective nitric oxide synthase inhibitor, on ischemia/reperfusion-induced renal injury and endothelin-1 overproduction in post-ischemic kidneys. Ischemic acute renal failure was induced by occlusion of the left renal artery and vein for 45 minutes followed by reperfusion, 2 weeks after contralateral nephrectomy. At 24 hours after reperfusion, renal function in untreated acute renal failure rats markedly decreased and histological examination revealed severe renal damage of the kidney. Increases in renal endothelin-1 contents were evident in the acute renal failure rats at 2 and 24 hours after reperfusion, respectively. Pretreatment with FK409 (1 or 3 mg/kg, intravenously) dose-dependently ameliorated renal injuries and suppressed the elevation of endothelin-1 content induced by ischemia/reperfusion. In contrast, N(G)-nitro-L-arginine methyl ester (1 or 10 mg/kg, intravenously) pretreatment dose-dependently aggravated renal injuries of acute renal failure rats, and the effect is accompanied by further increase in the renal endothelin-1 contents. These results suggest that both exogenous and endogenous nitric oxide have protective effects against ischemia/reperfusion-induced renal dysfunction and tissue damage, probably through the suppression of endothelin-1 overproduction in post-ischemic kidneys.