Objective: To investigate the effects of Artesunate on expression of MCP-1 and MCP-1 mRNA in renal tissue of the rat experimental IgA nephropathy model.
Methods: 40 rats were divided randomly into 4 groups with 10 rats in normal control group while the other 30 in model control group, low dose Artesunate group and high dose Artesunate group after the establishment of IgA nephropathy model. MCP-1 and MCP-1 mRNA in renal tissue were tested by immunohistochemical and RT-PCR methods.
Results: The expression of MCP-1 mRNA in model control group was significantly increased (0.4726+/-0.086 vs 0.1445+/-0.095, P<0.05, compared with normal control group), which was suppressed in low dose Artesunate group (0.2844+/-0.065) and high dose Artesunate group (0.2184+/-0.058) (both P<0.05, compared with model control group). In addition, hemouria, proteinuria and pathological changes in renal tissue were improved in the Artesunate groups.
Conclusion: Artesunate shows the ability of downregulating the expression of MCP-1 in renal tissue, which may explain one of the mechanisms of Artesunate effectiveness in clinical treatment of IgA nephropathy.