Chayanut Suwanpen1, Phonethipsavanh Nouanthong2, Veeravich Jaruvongvanich3, Krit Pongpirul4,5, Wannarat Amornnimit Pongpirul6, Asada Leelahavanichkul7,8, Talerngsak Kanjanabuch9,10. 1. Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, 254 Phayathai Road, Pathumwan, Bangkok, 10330, Thailand. jjiabjiab@hotmail.com. 2. Pasteur Institute du Laos, Samsenthai Road, Ban Kao-Gnot, Sisattanak district, P.O Box 3560, Vientiane, Lao PDR. thip_mt@hotmail.com. 3. Department of Internal Medicine, University of Hawaii, 1356 Lusitana Street, Honolulu, HI, 96813, USA. veeravich_j@hotmail.com. 4. Department of Preventive and Social Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand. doctorkrit@gmail.com. 5. Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, MD, USA. doctorkrit@gmail.com. 6. Division of Nephrology, Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand. awannarat@yahoo.com. 7. Division of Nephrology, Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand. a_leelahavanit@yahoo.com. 8. Immunology Unit, Department of Microbiology, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand. a_leelahavanit@yahoo.com. 9. Division of Nephrology, Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand. golfnephro@hotmail.com. 10. Kidney and Metabolic Research Unit, Faculty of Medicine, Chulalongkorn University, Bangkok, Thailand. golfnephro@hotmail.com.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: The prevalence of obesity is increasing during the past decade along with obesity-related glomerulopathy (ORG), glomeruli injury due to the obesity. The major pathogenesis of ORG is the shedding of podocytes from the glomerular cell barrier into urine. Podocalyxin (PCX), a main surface antigen of podocyte, correlates well with glomerulosclerosis progression and glomerular injury severity, and might be a potential biomarker for early renal alteration in obesity. In addition, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and alpha-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) also play a role in promoting glomerulosclerosis. The aim of this study was to explore whether obese subjects without other diseases excrete more PCX-positive (PCX+) cells than non-obese individuals, in comparison with urine protein-creatinine ratio (UPCR) and glomerular filtration rate (GFR) as traditional renal markers. Moreover, the effect of body mass index (BMI) on urinary VEGF, PCX or α-SMA positive cells was also investigated. METHODS: Forty-eight obese and 13 non-obese adults were included. Exfoliated cells from fresh first void morning urine were harvested, stained with PCX, VEGF, and α-SMA antibody, and quantified by flow cytometry. Correlation between interested urinary biomarkers (cells positive for PCX, VEGF plus PCX and α-SMA), UPCR and GFR with BMI and metabolic risk factors were analyzed. RESULTS: Obese patients had significantly higher PCX+ cells than non-obese [0.62 (0.00-13.13) vs. 0.15 (0.00-0.72) cells/ml × mg cr, p < 0.05]. There was no significant difference in GFR and UPCR between the groups. Of interest, BMI demonstrated a correlation with PCX+ cells (r = 0.343, p = 0.008) and cells positive for PCX plus VEGF (r = 0.374, p = 0.004). CONCLUSION: Obese subjects without other diseases and with normal UPCR and GFR showed evidence of renal alteration through the detection of a higher number of PCX+ cells. Increasing BMI also resulted in higher number of PCX+ cells.
BACKGROUND: The prevalence of obesity is increasing during the past decade along with obesity-related glomerulopathy (ORG), glomeruli injury due to the obesity. The major pathogenesis of ORG is the shedding of podocytes from the glomerular cell barrier into urine. Podocalyxin (PCX), a main surface antigen of podocyte, correlates well with glomerulosclerosis progression and glomerular injury severity, and might be a potential biomarker for early renal alteration in obesity. In addition, vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and alpha-smooth muscle actin (α-SMA) also play a role in promoting glomerulosclerosis. The aim of this study was to explore whether obese subjects without other diseases excrete more PCX-positive (PCX+) cells than non-obese individuals, in comparison with urine protein-creatinine ratio (UPCR) and glomerular filtration rate (GFR) as traditional renal markers. Moreover, the effect of body mass index (BMI) on urinary VEGF, PCX or α-SMA positive cells was also investigated. METHODS: Forty-eight obese and 13 non-obese adults were included. Exfoliated cells from fresh first void morning urine were harvested, stained with PCX, VEGF, and α-SMA antibody, and quantified by flow cytometry. Correlation between interested urinary biomarkers (cells positive for PCX, VEGF plus PCX and α-SMA), UPCR and GFR with BMI and metabolic risk factors were analyzed. RESULTS:Obesepatients had significantly higher PCX+ cells than non-obese [0.62 (0.00-13.13) vs. 0.15 (0.00-0.72) cells/ml × mg cr, p < 0.05]. There was no significant difference in GFR and UPCR between the groups. Of interest, BMI demonstrated a correlation with PCX+ cells (r = 0.343, p = 0.008) and cells positive for PCX plus VEGF (r = 0.374, p = 0.004). CONCLUSION:Obese subjects without other diseases and with normal UPCR and GFR showed evidence of renal alteration through the detection of a higher number of PCX+ cells. Increasing BMI also resulted in higher number of PCX+ cells.
Authors: James J Tomasek; Giulio Gabbiani; Boris Hinz; Christine Chaponnier; Robert A Brown Journal: Nat Rev Mol Cell Biol Date: 2002-05 Impact factor: 94.444