Inhibitive Effects of TanshinoneIIA on Renal Interstitial Fibrosis in Rats

ObjectiveTo investigate the effects of TanshinoneⅡA on renal interstitial fibrosis in rats and its mechanism.MethodsThirty male Sprague-Dawley rats were randomly divided into sham-operated group,model group and TanshinoneⅡA treated group.Rats in sham operated group did not have their left ureteral obstructed.Animal models of renal interstitial fibrosis were established with unilateral ureteral obstruction(UUO) in rats.TanshinoneⅡA was intraperitoneally injected every day with dose of 1.5 mg/kg on 24 hours before operation in TanshinoneⅡA treated group.The operation procedure in TanshinoneⅡA treated group was the same as that in the model group.After 10 days of UUO,all rats were killed and the obstructed kidney were collected for Hematoxylin-Eosin(HE) and Masson staining to check the pathological changes of renal interstitial tissues.The protein expression and localization of transforming growth factor-β1(TGF-β1),α-smooth muscle actin(α-SMA) and typeⅠcollagen in renal tissues were detected with immunohistochemical staining.The mRNA levels of TGF-β1,α-SMA and typeⅠcollagen were analyzed with reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction(RT-PCR).ResultsCompared with sham-operated group,model group exhibited severe renal interstitial fibrosis and the expressions of TGF-β1,α-SMA and typeⅠcollagen were markedly higher in obstructed kidney(Pa0.01).Treated with TanshinoneⅡA,renal interstitial fibrosis was ameliorated and the expression levels of TGF-β1,α-SMA and typeⅠcollagen were down-regulated significantly in renal tissues(Pa0.05).ConclusionTanshinoneⅡA can inhibit renal interstitial fibrosis by down-regulating TGF-β1 expression,inhibiting fibroblasts proliferation and phenotypic transitions and reducing collagen sediment.