BMC Nephrology (Jan 2013)

Serum galectin-9 levels are elevated in the patients with type 2 diabetes and chronic kidney disease

  • Kurose Yuko,
  • Wada Jun,
  • Kanzaki Motoko,
  • Teshigawara Sanae,
  • Nakatsuka Atsuko,
  • Murakami Kazutoshi,
  • Inoue Kentaro,
  • Terami Takahiro,
  • Katayama Akihiro,
  • Watanabe Mayu,
  • Higuchi Chigusa,
  • Eguchi Jun,
  • Miyatake Nobuyuki,
  • Makino Hirofumi

DOI
https://doi.org/10.1186/1471-2369-14-23
Journal volume & issue
Vol. 14, no. 1
p. 23

Abstract

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Abstract Background Galectin-9 (Gal-9) induces apoptosis in activated T helper 1 (TH1) cells as a ligand for T cell immunoglobulin mucin-3 (Tim-3). Gal-9 also inhibits the G1 phase cell cycle arrest and hypertrophy in db/db mice, the hallmark of early diabetic nephropathy, by reversing the high glucose-induced up-regulation of cyclin dependent kinase inhibitors such as p27Kip1 and p21Cip1. Methods We investigated the serum levels of Gal-9 in the patients with type 2 diabetes and various stages of chronic kidney disease (CKD) (n=182). Results Serum Gal-9 levels in the patients with type 2 diabetes were 131.9 ± 105.4 pg/ml and Log10Gal-9 levels significantly and positively correlated with age (r=0.227, p=0.002), creatinine (r=0.175, p=0.018), urea nitrogen (r=0.162, p=0.028) and osmotic pressure (r=0.187, p=0.014) and negatively correlated with estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR) (r=−0.188, p=0.011). Log10Gal-9 levels increased along with the progression of GFR categories of G1 to G4, and they were statistically significant by Jonckheere-Terpstra test (p=0.012). Log10Gal-9 levels remained similar levels in albuminuria stages of A1 to A3. Conclusion The elevation of serum Gal-9 in the patients with type 2 diabetes is closely linked to GFR and they may be related to the alteration of the immune response and inflammation of the patients with type 2 diabetes and CKD.

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