Epidermal growth factor accelerates renal repair in mercuric chloride nephrotoxicity

Repair and recovery of ischemic or nephrotoxic acute renal failure (ARF) are dependent upon renal tubule cell regeneration. Because epidermal growth factor (EGF) is a potent growth promoter to renal tubule cells, experiments were undertaken to assess the effects of exogenous administration of EGF during the recovery phase of HgCl2-induced ARF. Rats were administered HgCl2 (5 mg/kg sc), and [3H]thymidine incorporation into renal tissue and blood urea nitrogen (BUN) and serum creatinine concentrations were measured at various times after toxin administration. EGF (20 microgram) was administered subcutaneously 2 or 4 h after HgCl2 injection. Exogenous EGF resulted in greater levels of renal [3H]thymidine incorporation into renal proximal tubule cells compared with those observed in nontreated animals at several time points in the first 48 h after toxic injury. Morphometric analysis of histoautoradiograph sections of renal tissue demonstrated that greater than 96% of labeled cells were tubular in all examined sections. This EGF-related acceleration in DNA synthesis was associated with significantly lower peak BUN and serum creatinine levels, averaging 213 +/- 23 and 6.54 +/- 0.72 (SE) mg/dl, respectively, at 3 days in EGF-treated nephrotoxic rats compared with peak levels of 359 +/- 40 and 9.92 +/- 1.67 mg/dl (P less than 0.001, n = 7-16) at 5 days in non-EGF-treated nephrotoxic rats. EGF treatment also was associated with a return to near normal BUN and serum creatinine levels approximately 4 days earlier than that observed in non-EGF-treated animals. These findings demonstrate that exogenous EGF accelerates the repair process of the kidney after a severe toxic insult.