| OBJECTIVE: To explore the protective effect of Radix Codonopsis extract saponins on renal ischemia-reperfusion injury after kidney transplantation; and further investigates the protection mechanisms.METHODS: Modeling the ischemia-reperfusion injury after renal transplantation of inbred male and female SD rats. The rats were male and female evenly randomly divided into three groups: sham-operated group (SH),renal ischemia-reperfusion after renal transplantation model group (I/R),Saponins intervention in the renal ischemia-reperfusion injury after renal transplant group (SA). At 6 hours and 24 hours after operation blood were collected to detect blood urea nitrogen (Bun), creatinine (Cr) superoxide dismutase (SOD) and malondialdehyde ( MDA) levels, Respectively; At 24 hours, Terminal transferase dUTP nick end-labeling (TUNEL) in situ detection of cell apoptosis and Apoptosis Index (AI), Reverse-transcription polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR) detection of bax and bcl-2 mRNA expression levels in each groups; meanwhile Semi-quantitative immunohistochemistry detection bax and bcl-2 protein expression of renal tissue.RESULTS: Apoptosis index in SH was significantly lower than that in SA and I/R, detected by TUNEL method, while the AI in I/R was significantly higher than that in SA (P<0.05). The result of RT-PCR, expression of bcl-2 in SH was significantly higher than that in I/R and SA (P<0.05), and expression of bax in SH was significantly lower than that in the other two groups (P<0.05), compared between I/R and SA; bcl-2 expression in SA was significantly higher than I/R (P<0.05), and bax expression in SA group was significantly lower than I/R (P<0.05). Result of immunohistochemistry staining has the same tendency as RT-PCR, an increase in the number of active bax–positive staining tubular cells was observed in SA and I/R kidney tissues, and an decrease in the number of active bcl-2–positive staining tubular cells was observed in that two groups (P<0.05); number of active bax–positive staining in SA was significantly lower than that in I/R, and the active bcl-2–positive staining was significantly higher in SA than that in I/R (P<0.05). SH compared with the other two groups the SOD were significantly higher, MDA decreased significantly,Both with a statistically significant difference (P<0.05), while the I/R compared with the SA, the SOD was significantly lower and MDA was significantly higher, with statistically significant difference (P<0.05). Compared with SH, I/R and SA Bun and Scr levels were significantly increased, both with a statistically significant difference (P<0.05) While I/R compared with SA, the Bun and Scr levels were significantly higher with statistically significant difference (P<0.05).CONCLUSION: Radix Codonopsis extract saponins through eliminating free radicals which generated by ischemia-reperfusion to reduction the damage of cell membrane and organelle membrane; possibly by up regulation the expression of bcl-2 and down regulation of the expression of bax to reduce the bcl-2/bax ratio, inhibited cell apoptosis, thereby protecting renal ischemia-reperfusion injury after renal transplantation. |
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