Arginase II is a mitochondrial enzyme that catalyses the hydrolysis of L-arginine into urea and ornithine. It is present in other extra-hepatic tissues that lack urea cycle. Therefore, it is plausible that arginase II has a physiological role other than urea cycle which includes polyamine, proline, glutamate synthesis and regulation of nitric oxide production. The high expression of arginase II in kidney, among extrahepatic tissues, might have an important role associated with kidney functions. The present study is aimed to determine the age-associated alteration in the activity and expression of arginase II in the kidney of mice of different ages. The effect of dietary restriction to modulate the age-dependent changes of arginase II was also studied. Results showed that renal arginase II activity declines significantly with the progression of age (p0.01 and p0.001 in 6-and 18-month-old mice, respectively as compared to 2-month old mice) and is due to the reduction in its protein as well as the mRNA level (p0.001 in both 6-and 18-month-old mice as compared to 2-month-old mice). Long-term dietary restriction for three months has significantly up-regulated arginase II activity and expression level in both 2-and 18-month-old mice (p0.01 and p0.001, respectively as compared to AL group). These findings clearly indicate that the reducing level of arginase II during aging might have an impact on the declining renal functions. This age-dependent down-regulation of arginase II in the kidney can be attenuated by dietary restriction which may help in the maintenance of such functions.
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