Review
Medical Laboratory Technology
Lingfeng Zeng, Cheuk-Chun Szeto
Summary: Podocytes play a crucial role in maintaining kidney function and are the focus of many kidney diseases. Urinary podocyte-specific markers have been studied for diagnosis and monitoring of kidney diseases, although further research is needed for standardization and automation of laboratory methods. Despite some techniques being expensive or labor-intensive currently, advancements in technology may make them more widely available in the future.
CLINICA CHIMICA ACTA
(2021)
Article
Urology & Nephrology
Wei Gong, Jiayu Song, Jing Liang, Haoyang Ma, Wenxiao Wu, Yue Zhang, Li Yang, Songming Huang, Zhanjun Jia, Aihua Zhang
Summary: Emerging evidence suggests that downregulated expression of Lon protease 1 in podocytes is negatively correlated with urinary protein levels and glomerular pathology, playing a crucial role in podocyte injury and the progression of podocytopathy. Podocyte-specific deletion of Lon protease 1 induces mitochondrial dysfunction and podocyte injury, highlighting the potential therapeutic approach of regulating Lon protease 1 in podocytes for podocytopathy.
KIDNEY INTERNATIONAL
(2021)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Daiji Kawanami, Yuichi Takashi, Hiroyuki Takahashi, Ryoko Motonaga, Makito Tanabe
Summary: Diabetic kidney disease (DKD) is the leading cause of end-stage renal disease (ESRD) globally. Dipeptidyl peptidase (DPP)-4 inhibitors are commonly used in treating patients with type 2 diabetes (T2D) by reducing glucose levels through inhibition of incretin degradation. Clinical and experimental studies have shown that DPP-4 inhibitors have beneficial effects on DKD, independent of their glucose-lowering abilities, mediated by anti-fibrotic, anti-inflammatory, and anti-oxidative stress properties.
Review
Medicine, General & Internal
Qisheng Lin, Khadija Banu, Zhaohui Ni, Jeremy S. Leventhal, Madhav C. Menon
Summary: Autophagy is a protective mechanism that helps cells maintain homeostasis and provide nutrition, with podocytes showing high levels of autophagy. Understanding the role and regulation of autophagy in podocyte injury may provide insights into novel therapeutic targets for glomerular disease.
JOURNAL OF CLINICAL MEDICINE
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Laura Valles-Saiz, Rocio Peinado-Cahuchola, Jesus Avila, Felix Hernandez
Summary: Tau, a cytoskeletal protein mainly expressed in neurons, plays important roles in multiple cellular processes. This study reveals that Tau4R is the main isoform of tau expressed in the kidney, particularly in podocytes. Knockout mice without tau display a more dynamic cytoskeleton in podocytes and exhibit glomerular damage and reduced urinary creatinine.
CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR LIFE SCIENCES
(2022)
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Gang Li, Bowen Yi, Jingtong Liu, Xiaoquan Jiang, Fulu Pan, Wenning Yang, Haibo Liu, Yang Liu, Guopeng Wang
Summary: A PBPK-DO model was successfully developed to predict the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic changes of saxagliptin in humans when coadministered with CYP3A4 inhibitors or inducers. The study found that the oral dose of saxagliptin should be reduced to 2.5 mg when coadministered with ketoconazole, but no adjustment is needed when coadministered with delavirdine or rifampicin.
FRONTIERS IN PHARMACOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Cell Biology
Claire Bryant, Amy Webb, Alexander S. Banks, Dawn Chandler, Rajgopal Govindarajan, Shipra Agrawal
Summary: Podocytes are specialized epithelial cells that play a crucial role in maintaining kidney function. They express specific variants of the PPAR gamma gene, which are different from those found in adipose tissue. Understanding these podocyte-specific PPAR gamma variants could lead to the development of targeted therapeutic treatments.
Article
Cell Biology
Henning Hagmann, Naghmeh Hassanzadeh Khayyat, Mahsa Matin, Cem Oezel, He Chen, Astrid Schauss, Christoph Schell, Thomas Benzing, Stuart Dryer, Paul T. Brinkkoetter
Summary: Reactive oxygen species (ROS) generated in diabetes and systemic inflammatory diseases modify cellular lipids, which in turn affect the biophysical properties of cellular membranes. This study investigates the impact of lipid peroxidation on TRPC6 activity and glomerular function.
Article
Urology & Nephrology
Janina Mueller-Deile, Nina Sopel, Alexandra Ohs, Victoria Rose, Marwin Groener, Christoph Wrede, Jan Hegermann, Christoph Daniel, Kerstin Amann, Gunther Zahner, Mario Schiffer
Summary: This study demonstrates that miR-192-5p and miR-378a-3p are upregulated in the glomeruli of iMGN patients, while NPNT is reduced. Using zebrafish and mouse models, it was shown that overexpression of miR-192-5p and knockdown of npnt induced edema, proteinuria, and podocyte damage. GEC downregulates podocyte NPNT via exosomes containing miR-192-5p.
JOURNAL OF THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF NEPHROLOGY
(2021)
Review
Medicine, General & Internal
Xuefei Tian, Patricia Bunda, Shuta Ishibe
Summary: Endocytosis is a mechanism that internalizes and recycles plasma membrane components and transmembrane receptors via vesicle formation. Podocytes, specialized epithelial cells in the kidney, play a critical role in maintaining the integrity of the glomerular filtration barrier. Dysfunction of podocyte endocytosis is associated with the development and progression of proteinuria in chronic kidney disease. Understanding the mechanism of podocyte endocytosis may provide insights into maintaining normal filtration function and potential therapeutic strategies for proteinuric glomerular diseases.
FRONTIERS IN MEDICINE
(2022)
Article
Cell Biology
Claire Bryant, Rachel Cianciolo, Rajgopal Govindarajan, Shipra Agrawal
Summary: Adriamycin-induced nephropathy is a common model for studying FSGS, but its application in C57BL/6 mice is limited. We systematically investigated the specifics of ADR-nephrosis in C57BL/6 N and J substrains. Our findings showed that N substrain exhibited more severe proteinuria and renal lesions compared to J substrain. This provides a reproducible mouse model for FSGS in a previously assumed ADR-resistant strain and highlights the differences between J and N substrains.
FRONTIERS IN CELL AND DEVELOPMENTAL BIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Plant Sciences
Raafat A. Abdel-Aal, Mahran S. Abdel-Rahman, Soad Al Bayoumi, Laila A. Ali
Summary: Stevia has antihyperglycemic effects and can enhance the antidiabetic activity of saxagliptin. DPP-4 attenuation, antihyperlipidemic and antioxidant activity, as well as improvement of insulin sensitivity, may be involved in the antidiabetic action of stevia.
JOURNAL OF ETHNOPHARMACOLOGY
(2021)
Article
Cell Biology
Manuel Rogg, Jasmin I. Maier, Martin Helmstaedter, Alena Sammarco, Felix Kliewe, Oliver Kretz, Lisa Weisser, Clara Van Wymersch, Karla Findeisen, Anna L. Koessinger, Olga Tsoy, Jan Baumbach, Markus Grabbert, Martin Werner, Tobias B. Huber, Nicole Endlich, Oliver Schilling, Christoph Schell
Summary: Glomerular disease due to podocyte malfunction is a major factor in chronic kidney disease. Loss of function in the EPB41L5 gene affects protein uptake and slit diaphragm formation. Transcriptomic and proteomic analysis of human EPB41L5 knockout podocytes reveals impaired mechanotransduction through the YAP/TAZ signaling pathway. Inhibition of the YAP/TAZ-TEAD transcription factor complex further identifies ARHGAP29 as a podocyte RhoGAP that is dependent on EPB41L5 and YAP/TAZ.
Article
Urology & Nephrology
Masahiro Okabe, Kentaro Koike, Izumi Yamamoto, Nobuo Tsuboi, Taiji Matsusaka, Takashi Yokoo
Summary: This study found that EGR1 is a promising marker for identifying early podocyte injury in human glomerular diseases.
CLINICAL KIDNEY JOURNAL
(2023)
Review
Medicine, General & Internal
Gentzon Hall, Christina M. Wyatt
Summary: Proteinuria is common in individuals with HIV infection, reflecting kidney disease, treatment-related nephrotoxicity, and HIV-related glomerular diseases. Recent studies have focused on investigating the mechanisms of podocyte and tubulointerstial injury in HIV-associated nephropathy, showing that injury-induced podocyte dedifferentiation, hyperplasia, and cytoskeletal dysregulation may lead to loss of glomerular filtration barrier integrity.
FRONTIERS IN MEDICINE
(2021)