SGLT2 INHIBITION PREVENTS RENAL FIBROSIS IN CYCLOSPORINE NEPHROPATHY

Abstract Background and Aims Sodium glucose cotransporter 2 (SGLT2) inhibitors, a new class of antidiabetic drugs, showed nephroprotection in type 2 diabetic patients. The mechanisms underlying nephroprotection are not completely known and it is unclear whether the nephroprotective effects are present also in non-diabetic nephropathy. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of empagliflozin, a SGLT-2 inhibitor, in cyclosporine nephropathy in the absence of diabetes. Method Ten days before the beginning and then during the entire experimental periods, low-salt diet (Teklad 7034) was administered to Sprague Dawley rats. Cyclosporine-A (CsA, 15 mg/kg/day, intraperitoneal injection; n=6) and CsA plus empagliflozin (Empa, 10 mg/kg /day, per os; n=6) were administered for 4 weeks. Control group was treated with placebo (n=6). Blood pressure was measured by plethysmographic method at the beginning and at the end of the experimental period. At the end of the protocol, the kidneys were excised for histomorphometric analysis of renal fibrosis and for immunohistochemical evaluation of inflammatory infiltrates and tyrosine hydroxylase expression, used as marker of symphatetic nerve activity. Results The rats treated with CsA showed a significant increase (p <0.01) in blood pressure, which was slightly reduced by administration of empagliflozin. CsA administration caused an increase in glomerular and tubulo-interstitial fibrosis (p <0.05), renal inflammatory infiltrates (p <0.05) and tyrosine hydroxylase expression (p <0.01) as compared to the control rats. Treatment with empagliflozin reduced glomerular and tubulo-interstitial fibrosis (p <0.05), inflammatory cell infiltration (p <0.01) and tyrosine hydroxylase expression (p <0.01), as compared to CsA-treated rats. Conclusion Empagliflozin administration showed protective effects on cyclosporine nephropathy, decreasing renal fibrosis, macrophage infiltration and tyrosine hydroxylase expression. These data suggest that the nephroprotective role of empagliflozin could not be restricted only to diabetic nephropathy.