Tongxinluo ameliorates renal structure and function-by regulating miR-21-induced epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition in diabetic nephropathy

摘要

diabetic nephropathy (DN) is associated with microvascular diseases and can also ultimately lead to end-stage renal disease and the need for dialysis and/or kidney transplantation (25). Epithelial-to-mesenchymal transition (EMT) is an essential process in diabetic nephropathy, not only in the pathogenesis of renal interstitial fibrosis but also glomerulosclerosis (17,24). Loss of E-cadherin (E-CA) and gain in a-smooth muscle actin (alpha-SMA) expression are the key hallmarks of EMT (4).