Physiological reports
-
Physiological reports · Nov 2016
Inhibition of GSK-3β increases trabecular bone volume but not cortical bone volume in adenine-induced uremic mice with severe hyperparathyroidism.
Patients with chronic kidney disease (CKD) are at increased risk for bone fractures compared with the general population. Repression of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway is associated with bone abnormalities. Inhibition of glycogen synthase kinase (GSK)-3β, a critical component of the Wnt/β-catenin signaling pathway, increases bone volume through accumulation of β-catenin. ⋯ Trabecular bone volume increased in CKD-GSK-3β+/- and CKD+LiCl mice compared with CNT and CKD mice. However, there were no significant differences in cortical bone volume among the three groups of CKD mice. The results suggest that inhibition of GSK-3β increases trabecular bone volume but not cortical bone volume in adenine-induced uremic mice with uncontrolled hyperparathyroidism.
-
Physiological reports · Nov 2016
Haploinsufficiency of the folliculin gene leads to impaired functions of lung fibroblasts in patients with Birt-Hogg-Dubé syndrome.
Birt-Hogg-Dubé syndrome (BHDS) is an autosomal dominant inherited disorder caused by germline mutations in the FLCN gene, and characterized by skin fibrofolliculomas, multiple lung cysts, spontaneous pneumothorax, and renal neoplasms. Pulmonary manifestations frequently develop earlier than other organ involvements, prompting a diagnosis of BHDS However, the mechanism of lung cyst formation and pathogenesis of pneumothorax have not yet been clarified. Fibroblasts were isolated from lung tissues obtained from patients with BHDS (n = 12) and lung cancer (n = 10) as controls. ⋯ Our results suggest that FLCN is associated with chemotaxis in lung fibroblasts. Together with reduced TGF-β1 expression by BHDS lung fibroblasts, a state of FLCN haploinsufficiency may cause lung fibroblast dysfunction, thereby impairing tissue repair. These may reveal one mechanism of lung cyst formation and pneumothorax in BHDS patients.