Protective Effects of Chromium Picolinate Against Diabetic-Induced Renal Dysfunction and Renal Fibrosis in Streptozotocin-Induced Diabetic Rats

Abstract

Diabetic nephropathy (DN) is one of the most important complications of diabetes, and the leading cause of end-stage renal disease (ESRD). While Chromium picolinate (CrPic) supplementation has been found to be effective in treating diabetes, its effects on diabetic-induced nephropathy have not been studied. Therefore, in this study, CrPic (1 mg kg −1 d −1 ) was administered to a DN rat model by oral gavage for eight weeks to investigate its effects. The results show that CrPic supplementation caused a decrease in levels of blood glucose, serum insulin, blood urea nitrogen (BUN), serum creatinine, and urinary albumin in DN rats. It also reversed renal pathological changes, including renal glomerular sclerosis and interstitial fibrosis. In addition, the oxidative defense system in the kidneys of DN rats was found to be improved; the biological activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), and glutathione peroxidase (GPX) increased; and the content of malondialdehyde (MDA) lowered. Immunohistochemical results reveal that the expression levels of renal transforming growth factor-β1 (TGF-β1), Smad 2, and Smad 3 decreased significantly in the kidneys of rats in the CrPic-treated group. CrPic administration was thus found to ameliorate diabetic nephropathy in SD rats via an antioxidative stress mechanism, as well the ability to inhibit TGF-β1/Smad2/3 expression. This study suggests that CrPic could be a potential renal-protective nutrient against diabetic nephropathy.

Identification of Common Genes and Pathways in Eight Fibrosis Diseases

“…Renal fibrosis is often caused by renal glomerular sclerosis and interstitial fibrosis. Therefore, glomerular visceral epithelial cell development and formation, glomerular filtration, and transfer function act as the internal causes of renal fibrosis ( Qi et al, 2020 ).…”

Magnoflorine Ameliorates Inflammation and Fibrosis in Rats With Diabetic Nephropathy by Mediating the Stability of Lysine-Specific Demethylase 3A

“…Moreover, we observed consistent results in rats challenged with STZ, corroborating the activation of the TGF-β1/Smad2/Smad3 signaling in DN development. The paramount importance of the TGF-β1/Smad signaling has been underscored in various DN pathogenesis, includes podocyte injury, mesangial cell proliferation, and especially renal fibrosis ( Isacsson et al, 1988 ; Tang et al, 2018a , b , 2020 ; Zhang et al, 2019 ; Qi et al, 2020 ). As an important regulator in the pathway, TGF-β1 has been recognized as an effective cytokine that modulates cell proliferation, differentiation, migration, and ECM turnover in the kidney ( Lan and Chung, 2012 ).…”

A Comprehensive insight into the effect of chromium supplementation on oxidative stress indices in diabetes mellitus: A systematic review

“…The characteristics of 25 animal studies included in the current systematic review are demonstrated in Table 1. These studies were published between 2006 and 2020 and were from the Asia, 32‐39,42 Africa, 40,41,43,44 Europe, 33,44‐51 and the USA 47,48,52‐54 . Among these 25 animal studies, three studies were conducted on mice, 52,55,56 and 22 studies were conducted on rats 32,33,40‐50,53,54,57‐62 .…”

“…These studies were published between 2006 and 2020 and were from the Asia, 32‐39,42 Africa, 40,41,43,44 Europe, 33,44‐51 and the USA 47,48,52‐54 . Among these 25 animal studies, three studies were conducted on mice, 52,55,56 and 22 studies were conducted on rats 32,33,40‐50,53,54,57‐62 . Also, among these 25 animal studies, three studies were conducted on animal models of type 1 diabetes, 41,52,55 and 22 studies were conducted on animal models of type 2 diabetes 32,33,40,42‐50,53,54,56‐62 .…”

“…In addition, chromium's antioxidant properties may modulate oxidative stress and inflammation caused by hyperglycaemia in T2DM 31 . Some studies have demonstrated that chromium could attenuate oxidative stress in diabetes 32‐37 . Nevertheless, other studies did not observe a significant reduction in oxidative stress levels or an increase in antioxidant enzymes' activity after the administration of chromium 38‐41 .…”