During renal injury, activation of p38 mitogen-activated protein kinase (MAPK) in proximal tubular cells plays an important role in the inflammatory events that eventually lead to renal fibrosis. We hypothesized that local inhibition of p38 within these cells may be an interesting approach for the treatment of renal fibrosis. To effectuate this, we developed a renal-specific conjugate of the p38 inhibitor SB202190 [4-(4-fluorophenyl)-2-(4-hydroxyphenyl)-5-(4-pyridyl)1 H -imidazole] and the carrier lysozyme. First, we demonstrated that SB202190 inhibited the expression of albumin-induced proinflammatory (monocyte chemoattractant protein-1) and transforming growth factor (TGF)-β1-induced profibrotic (procollagen-Iα1) genes over 50% in renal tubular cells (normal rat kidney-52E). Next, we conjugated SB202190 via a carbamate linkage to lysozyme. However, this conjugate rapidly released the drug upon incubation in serum. Therefore, we applied a new platinum(II)-based linker approach, the so-called universal linkage system (ULS), which forms a coordinative bond with SB202190. The SB202190-ULS-lysozyme remained stable in serum but released the drug in kidney homogenates. SB202190-ULS-lysozyme accumulated efficiently in renal tubular cells and provided a local drug reservoir during a period of 3 days after a single intravenous injection. Treatment with SB202190-ULS-lysozyme inhibited TGF-β1-induced gene expression for procollagen-Iα1 by 64% in HK-2 cells. Lastly, we evaluated the efficacy of a single dose of the conjugate in the unilateral renal ischemia-reperfusion rat model. A reduction of intrarenal p38 phosphorylation and α-smooth muscle actin protein expression was observed 4 days after the ischemia-reperfusion injury. In conclusion, we have developed a novel strategy for local delivery of the p38 MAPK inhibitor SB202190, which may be of use in the treatment of renal fibrosis.
在肾损伤过程中,近端小管细胞中p38丝裂原活化蛋白激酶(
MAPK)的激活在炎症事件中起着重要作用,这些事件最终导致肾纤维化。我们假设在这些细胞内局部抑制p38可能是一种治疗肾纤维化的有趣方法。为此,我们开发了一种肾脏特异性的p38
抑制剂SB202190 [4-(4-
氟苯基)-2-(
4-羟基苯基)-5-(4-
吡啶基)1H -
咪唑]与载体溶菌酶的共轭物。首先,我们证明SB202190能够抑制肾小管细胞(正常大鼠肾脏-52E)中由白蛋白诱导的促炎性(单核细胞趋化蛋白-1)和由转化生长因子(TGF)-β1诱导的促纤维化(前胶原-Iα1)
基因的表达超过50%。接下来,我们通过
碳酸酯链连接将SB202190与溶菌酶共轭。然而,这种共轭物在血清中孵育时迅速释放药物。因此,我们采用了一种新的基于
铂(II)的链接器方法,即所谓的通用链接系统(ULS),该系统与SB202190形成配位键。SB202190-ULS-溶菌酶在血清中保持稳定,但在肾脏匀浆中释放药物。SB202190-ULS-溶菌酶有效地在肾小管细胞中积累,并在静脉注射后的3天内提供局部药物储藏。使用SB202190-ULS-溶菌酶处理抑制HK-2细胞中TGF-β1诱导的前胶原-Iα1
基因表达64%。最后,我们评估了在单侧肾缺血再灌注大鼠模型中单剂量共轭物的疗效。观察到缺血再灌注损伤后4天,肾内p38
磷酸化和α-平滑肌肌动蛋白表达的减少。总之,我们开发了一种新颖的局部递送p38
MAPK
抑制剂SB202190的策略,这可能对治疗肾纤维化有用。