Effect of quercetin on TGF-β_1-induced extracellular matrix accumulation in rat renal tubular epithelial cells

AIM:To investigate the effect of quercetin on TGF-β1-induced MCP-1,PAI-1 and Col-Ⅰexpressions in rat renal tubular epithelial cells.METHODS:Growth arrested and synchronized rat renal tubular epithelial cells(NRK-52E)were stimulated with 10 μg/L TGF-β1.In some experiments cells were pretreated with quercetin(50 μmol/L)for 90 min.The mRNA expressions of MCP-1 and Col-Ⅰ in cultured NRK-52E cells were measured by semi-quantitive reverse transcriptase polymerase chain reaction(RT-PCR).Both PAI-1 mRNA and protein expression were assessed by RT-PCR and Western blotting,respectively.RESULTS:TGF-β1 stimulated MCP-1 mRNA overexpression from 2 h to 24 h in a time-dependent manner and also significantly increased both PAI-1 mRNA and protein overexpression in NRK-52E cells.TGF-β1 increased Col-Ⅰ overexpression in NRK-52E cells by 2.4-fold in 24 h compared to that in control(P0.05).Quercetin effectively reversed TGF-β1-induced MCP-1,PAI-1 and Col-Ⅰ overexpression in NRK-52E cells(P0.05).CONCLUSION:Quercetin reverses TGF-β1-induced extracellular matrix accumulation in rat renal tubular epithelial cells and may benefit in protecting and treatment for renal fibrosis.