Gene chip screen in mice kidney with acute paraquat poisoning and preliminary analysis of the differentially expressed genes

Abstract

Objective To study the gene expression profile in mice kidney with acute paraquat (PQ) poisoning and identify key genes related to renal injury. Methods A total of 20 mice (C57BL/6) were randomly (random number) divided into four groups, namely control group (group A, n =5) and poisoned groups (groups B, C, D, n =5/group). In group A, mice were administrated with distilled water (0.01 mL/g weight) while in groups B, C, D were administered with equivalent volume of PQ solution (diluted from 20% to 0.05% with distilled water) dissolved in distilled water via a gastric tube. Mice of group A were sacrificed immediately and mice of groups B and C at 6 h and 24 h after administration of PQ. The gene expression profile changes of kidney tissue were measured by cDNA Arraychip technology. Mice of group D were observed for mortality rate 48 h later. Results The body weights of mice decreased significantly after administration of PQ. The mortality in group D at 48 h after PQ poisoning was 100%. Compared with the control group, totally 1 792 genes with differential expression variations were identified in 6 h group and 24 h group. There were 8 key genes selected through bioinformatics analysis and they were arranged in real-time PCR: Nlrc5, Serpinb9, Cd40, Rnf135, Dhx58, Sp110, Fcgr1, and Arhgef12. And then, Nlrc5, Serpinb9 and Rnf135 were under Western blot investigation. The results of PCR and Western blot showed no significant difference to those from bioinformatics genetic analysis. Conclusions The investigation based on genome wide chip in researching related genes of PQ kidney has offered a novel idea in studying pathogenesis of acute PQ intoxication. Key words: Paraquat poisoning; Renal injury; Gene chip; Bioinformatics; Mechanism