Possible role of autoantibodies against nephrin in an experimental model of chronic graft-versus-host disease.

Nephrin, a product of the NPHS1 gene, is a component of the slit diaphragms that are found between glomerular foot processes and is a crucial element for glomerular filtration barrier. Recently, nephrin has been focused in a number of studies of proteinuria development including various types of acquired glomerular diseases including minimal change nephrotic syndrome and membranous nephropathy. However, the precise role of nephrin in such acquired glomerular diseases is still unknown. To analyse the role of nephrin further, two kinds of anti-nephrin antibodies were raised in the rabbits and applied to an experimental mouse model of chronic graft-versus-host disease, in which (C57BL/10 x DBA/2) F1 mice developed clinically apparent severe proteinuria with significant glomerular lesions 7 weeks after parental DBA/2 cell transfer. Antibody-sandwich ELISA detected anti-nephrin antibodies during week 2 to week 6, with the peak at week 2 or week 4. Colocalization of nephrin and IgG on week 4, week 6, and week 8 was revealed by confocal microscopic analysis, suggesting that in situ immune complex formation with nephrin in glomerular lesion. Taken together, it seems to be suggested nephrin and its autoantibody have a certain role in the development of glomerular lesion in our model mice.