OBJECTIVE: To determine whether urinary prothrombin fragment 1 (UPTF1), which shows considerable promise as a critical determinant of calcium oxalate (CaOx) stone formation, is manufactured by the human kidney. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Ribonucleic acid was isolated from eight kidneys, two spleens and one liver. Using reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction, mRNA corresponding to the UPTF1 portion of prothrombin was analysed by agarose-gel electrophoresis and Southern blotting. RESULTS: Six kidney specimens showed clear evidence of prothrombin gene expression; expression in the kidney was less than that in the liver. CONCLUSION: This is the first demonstration of prothrombin gene expression within the human kidney, a finding that not only has implications for CaOx stone disease but also potentially for blood coagulation.
OBJECTIVE: To determine whether urinary prothrombin fragment 1 (UPTF1), which shows considerable promise as a critical determinant of calcium oxalate (CaOx) stone formation, is manufactured by the human kidney. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Ribonucleic acid was isolated from eight kidneys, two spleens and one liver. Using reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction, mRNA corresponding to the UPTF1 portion of prothrombin was analysed by agarose-gel electrophoresis and Southern blotting. RESULTS: Six kidney specimens showed clear evidence of prothrombin gene expression; expression in the kidney was less than that in the liver. CONCLUSION: This is the first demonstration of prothrombin gene expression within the human kidney, a finding that not only has implications for CaOxstone disease but also potentially for blood coagulation.