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Updated: May 30, 2026
Assessment of Kidney Function in Mouse Models of Glomerular Disease
Published on: June 30, 2018
A marked deficiency in circulating and renal IGF-I peptide does not inhibit compensatory renal enlargement in
Daniel Landau1, Jaclyn Biada, Yu Chen
1Department of Pediatrics, Soroka Medical Center, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva, Israel. ldaniel@bgu.ac.il
Objective:
Increase in kidney IGF-I levels due to its increased trapping from the circulation was hypothesized to be a key mediator of compensatory renal enlargement. We tested this hypothesis using genetically engineered mice with extremely low circulating IGF-I levels.
Design:
Both IGF-I deficient (ID) and normal (N) mice underwent a uninephrectomy (UNx) and sacrificed 2 or 9days later.
Results:
Initial body weight (BW) and kidney weight (KW) were significantly reduced in ID vs. N mice, while KW/BW ratios were similar. KW increased post-UNx to a comparable extent in ID and N mice (125±4 and 118±6% of pre-UNx KW, p<0.05 vs. C). Kidney IGF-I mRNA levels were similar in the ID and N mice and did not change post-UNx. Kidney IGF-I peptide levels pre-UNx were significantly lower in ID vs. N mice (25±5 vs. 305±39ng/g) and increased in both groups after UNx, remaining low in ID mice (45±4 in ID vs 561±64ng/g in N). IGF type 1 receptor phosphorylation was unchanged.
Conclusion:
While a severe deficiency of circulating IGF-I impairs body growth, UNx induces a significant and proportional increase in renal mass in ID mice despite markedly decreased kidney IGF-I levels (>90% reduction) and no significant change in receptor phosphorylation. This all suggests that factors other than circulating and locally produced IGF-I are responsible for compensatory renal enlargement.
