• Ying Yang, Xiaojian Feng, Xinyan Liu, Ying Wang, Min Hu, Qi Cao, Ziyan Zhang, Linxia Zhao, Jianlin Zhang, Rui Guo, Hailong Wang, Xi Qiao, Lihua Wang, and Guoping Zheng.
• Shanxi Medical University, Taiyuan, Shanxi, People's Republic of China.
• Nephrol. Dial. Transplant. 2019 Oct 1; 34 (10): 1657-1668.

BackgroundRenal fibrosis is a key pathological feature and final common pathway leading to end-stage kidney failure in many chronic kidney diseases. Myofibroblast is the master player in renal fibrosis. However, myofibroblasts are heterogeneous. Recent studies show that bone marrow-derived macrophages transform into myofibroblasts by transforming growth factor (TGF)-β-induced macrophage-myofibroblast transition (MMT) in renal fibrosis.MethodsTGF-β signaling was redirected by inhibition of β-catenin/T-cell factor (TCF) to increase β-catenin/Foxo in bone marrow-derived macrophages. A kidney fibrosis model of unilateral ureteral obstruction was performed in EGFP bone marrow chimera mouse. MMT was examined by flow cytometry analysis of GFP+F4/80+α-SMA+ cells from unilateral ureteral obstruction (UUO) kidney, and by immunofluorescent staining of bone marrow-derived macrophages in vitro. Inflammatory and anti-inflammatory cytokines were analysis by enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay.ResultsInhibition of β-catenin/TCF by ICG-001 combined with TGF-β1 treatment increased β-catenin/Foxo1, reduced the MMT and inflammatory cytokine production by bone marrow-derived macrophages, and thereby, reduced kidney fibrosis in the UUO model.ConclusionsOur results demonstrate that diversion of β-catenin from TCF to Foxo1-mediated transcription not only inhibits the β-catenin/TCF-mediated fibrotic effect of TGF-β, but also enhances its anti-inflammatory action, allowing therapeutic use of TGF-β to reduce both inflammation and fibrosis at least partially by changing the fate of bone marrow-derived macrophages.© The Author(s) 2018. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of ERA-EDTA. All rights reserved.

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