Inhibitive Effect of TanshinoneIIA on Renal Interstitial Fibrosis in Rats

Objective:To investigate the effect of tanshinoneⅡA on renal interstitial fibrosis in rats and its mechanism.Methods:Thirty male sprague-dawley rats were randomly divided into sham-operated group,model group and tanshinoneⅡA treated group.Animal models of renal interstitial fibrosis were established with unilateral ureteral ligation in rats.TanshinoneⅡA was injected intraperitoneally with dose of 1.5mg/kg daily in tanshinoneⅡA-treated group.After 10 days of unilateral ureteral obstruction,all rats were killed and the obstructed kidney were collected for HE and Masson staining to check the histological 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.Results:Compared with sham-operated group,model group exhibited severe renal interstitial fibrosis and expressions of TGF-β1,α-SMA and typeⅠcollagen were markedly higher in the obstructed kidney(P0.01).Treated with tanshinoneⅡA,renal interstitial fibrosis was less marked and levels of TGF-β1,α-SMA and typeⅠcollagen down-regulated significantly in renal tissues(P0.05).Conclusion:TanshinoneⅡA can inhibit renal interstitial fibrosis by down-regulating TGF-β1 expression,inhibiting fibroblasts proliferation and phenotypic transitions and reducing collagen sediment.