Dietary protein restriction rapidly reduces transforming growth factor beta 1 expression in experimental glomerulonephritis.

Dietary protein restriction has been shown to slow the rate of loss of kidney function in humans with progressive glomerulosclerosis due to glomerulonephritis or diabetes mellitus. A central feature of glomerulosclerosis is the pathological accumulation of extracellular matrix within the diseased glomeruli. Transforming growth factor beta 1 (TGF-beta 1) is known to have widespread regulatory effects on extracellular matrix and has been implicated as a major cause of increased extracellular matrix synthesis and buildup of pathological matrix within glomeruli in experimental glomerulonephritis. In the present study, it is shown that administration of a low protein diet to rats rapidly reduces the elevated expression of TGF-beta 1 mRNA and TGF-beta 1 protein that is known to occur within glomeruli after induction of glomerulonephritis. Compared to a normal protein diet, glomerulonephritic rats receiving the low protein diet did not develop an increase in glomerular extracellular matrix and showed significantly less proteinuria. Glomeruli isolated from glomerulonephritic rats fed the normal protein diet showed a marked increase in proteoglycan synthesis on day 7 of disease and were demonstrated to be secreting increased amounts of TGF-beta 1 into the medium, whereas glomeruli at the same point in time isolated from rats on a low protein diet showed no increase in proteoglycan production or TGF-beta 1 secretion. These results suggest that a mechanism of the rapid therapeutic effect of a low protein diet on experimental glomerulonephritis is through suppression of TGF-beta 1 expression and prevention of the induction of extracellular matrix synthesis within the injured glomeruli.