Effects of activin and follistatin on hydroxyproline and type Ⅳ collagen secreted by cultured rat renal interstitial fibroblasts / 第三军医大学学报

ABSTRACT

Objective To investigate the roles of activin A(ACT-A) and follistatin(FS) in renal interstitial fibrosis.Methods Renal interstitial fibroblasts were isolated from SD rat kidney and primarily cultured.The cells were divided into A group,F group and A+F group,and then each group was further divided into 5 subgroups according to their culture media being added with ACT-A(0,0.3,3,30,or 100 ng/ml),FS(0,0.3,3,30,or 100 ng/ml),and ACT-A(30 ng/ml) plus FS(0,0.3,3,30,or 100 ng/ml) respectively.Levels of type Ⅳ collagen(Ⅳ-C) and hydroxyproline(HYP) in the supernatants of cultured fibroblasts were measured by ELISA assay.Results Concentrations of Ⅳ-C and HYP in cultured rat renal interstitial fibroblasts were in a dose-dependent manner with ACT-A treatment.FS had no effect on these concentrations,but it inhibited the effects of ACT-A on Ⅳ-C and HYP in the supernatants of cultured fibroblasts in a dose-dependent manner.Conclusion ACT-A might be involved in occurrence and development of renal fibrosis by affecting renal interstitial fibroblasts.Exogenous FS could suppress the effects of ACT-A on the cultured renal fibroblasts.