Quantification of Changes in Transforming Growth Factor-β1 Gene Expression in Experimental Crescentic Glomerulonephritis

Abstract

Abstract

Transforming growth factor-β1 (TGFβ1) has recently been identified as a promoter of glomerular scarring in glomerulonephritis. The present studies employed polymerase chain reaction (PCR)-based methods to quantify changes in transcriptional activation of TGFβ1 in experimental crescentic glomerulonephritis. The disease was induced in the rat, and total RNA was isolated from glomeruli at stages in which proliferation, crescent formation, and scarring were prominent features. Total glomerular RNA was reverse transcribed (RT) to cDNA, and RT products were subsequently analyzed by comparative and competitive PCR. Enhanced TGFβ1 expression was apparent at the onset of proliferative glomerulonephritis and prominent during the phase of crescent formation. The observations indicate that PCR-based methods allow quantitation of changes in glomerular TGFβ1 expression in the course of glomerulonephritis.