ABSTRACT
<p><b>OBJECTIVE</b>To study the expression of Fractalkine (FKN) in the kidney tissue of rats with renal fibrosis and the effect of IL-18BP on FKN.</p><p><b>METHODS</b>Male Wister rats were randomly assigned to sham-operation (n=24), unilatral ureteral obstruction (UUO, n=22), and IL-18 binding protein (IL-18BP) treatment groups (n=23). The UUO model was prepared by unilateral ureteral ligation in the later two groups. The IL-18BP treatment group received an intraperitoneal injection of IL-18BP (0.1 mg/kg) every other day after UUO inducement, for 7 times, while normal saline was administered in the other two groups. Seven or eight rats of every group were sacrificed at 3, 7 or 14 days after IL-18BP or normal saline injections. FKN levels at various times were detected by immunohistochemistry and Western blot.</p><p><b>RESULTS</b>Compared with the sham-operation group, FKN levels in the kidney tissue of the untreated UUO group increased significantly at all time points (P<0.01). IL-18BP treatment decreased significantly FKN levels in the kidney tissue at all time points compared with the untreated UUO group (P<0.01).</p><p><b>CONCLUSIONS</b>IL-18BP treatment may down-regulate the increased FKN levels of the rat kidney tissue caused by UUO, possibly thus delays the occurrence and development of renal fibrosis.</p>