Expression of Peroxisome Proliferator-activated Receptor-γ in the Kidneys of Cats with Chronic Kidney Disease.

Abstract

Peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor (PPAR)-γ plays an important role in various cellular functions and its activation exerts protective effects in kidney diseases. In the present study, chronic kidney disease in cats was examined, and changes in renal expression of PPARγ were observed by use of immunohistochemistry. In normal kidneys, nuclei of the superficial cortical tubules, medullary tubules and glomerular cells expressed PPARγ. The vascular walls (tunica media) also showed positive expression. In diseased kidneys, the expression of PPARγ varied between the cases. Some cases showed strong expression, while others had weak expression. PPARγ expression in the nuclei of infiltrating mononuclear cells was also detected in over half of the cases. Although there was no significant relationship between the expression of renal PPARγ and the severity of kidney disease, the fact that there were many cases where the expression of renal PPARγ was reduced was an important finding, and might be one of the possible mechanisms underlying feline chronic kidney diseases.