Effect of treating renal failure with decorin gene therapy

To explore a new approach for treating renal insufficiency with gene therapy by implanting decorin (DCN)-expressing fibroblasts within the renal tissue of rats with renal failure to neutralize TGF-β1 activity.

The 5/6 kidney of the selected male SD rats were removed under aseptic conditions. The rats were grouped randomly after the establishment of the model. There were 10 rats in the sham-operated group (Group A), 10 in the operation control group (without treatment, Group B), 10 in the blank control group [treated with empty vector-transfected fibroblasts (FB (LXSN) cells), Group C], and 10 in the treatment group [treated with FB (LDCNSN) cells, Group D]. The pathological changes of rats including body weight, blood lipids, renal function, and renal histology, were observed. The expression of TGF-β1 and DCN in renal tissue was detected by immunohistochemistry.

There were no significant differences in body weight and blood lipids between the groups at 4 weeks after treatment. The levels of blood urea nitrogen and serum creatinine in rats in Group D were significantly decreased compared with those in Group C (p < 0.05). Although the differences were not statistically significant, the levels of those pathological indicators are higher than baseline values. The expression of DCN in renal tissue increased significantly after 4 weeks in rats of Group D and the differences were significant compared with the other groups. There were no significant differences in TGF-β1 expression between any two groups of Group D, B, and C. Furthermore, pathological damage to the renal interstitium of rats in Group D was significantly decreased compared with that of Group B and C.

DCN can alleviate fibrosis and delay the progression of renal failure.