Heme Oxygenase-1 Is Upregulated in the Kidney of Angiotensin II–Induced Hypertensive Rats

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Abstract
—In this study, we investigated the regulation and physiological role of heme oxygenase-1 (HO-1) in the kidney of rats with hypertension. Rats were continuously administered either angiotensin II (Ang II) or norepinephrine with an osmotic minipump for up to 7 days. Ang II infusion decreased the glomerular filtration rate (GFR) as determined through creatinine clearance (3.2±0.2 versus 1.2±0.2 mL/min with Ang II infusion, P<0.01) and increased proteinuria (9.7±1.3 versus 28.1±7.2 mg/d with Ang II infusion, P<0.01). In contrast, norepinephrine did not alter these laboratory values. Ang II infusion significantly increased HO-1 expression in mRNA (442±98% of control at day 5, P<0.01) and protein levels (314±49% of control at day 5, P<0.01). Immunohistochemistry showed that in the kidney of normotensive rats, HO-1 was expressed mainly in the basal side in the renal tubules. After Ang II infusion, HO-1 staining was more extensively dispersed in the tubular epithelial cells. The intraperitoneal administr...