Prostaglandin E2 Signaling Through Kidney EP1 and EP4 Receptors; Implications in Diabetes and Hypertension

Abstract

Chronic kidney disease is defined as the appearance of kidney functional or structural injury. Cyclooxygenase and prostaglandin E2 have been implicated in the pathogenesis of diabetic nephropathy, the leading cause of chronic kidney disease. Beneficial in certain settings, inhibition of the cyclooxygenase pathway can however be detrimental in patients with compromised cardiac or renal function. Moreover, the quest for new therapies to treat diabetic nephropathy is hampered by the lack of appropriate rodent models. This doctoral thesis is a culmination of three studies, the first to determine the role of the prostaglandin E2 EP1 receptor in diabetic nephropathy, the second to elucidate the vascular prostaglandin E2 EP4 receptor’s role in hypertension and lastly to establish and characterise a novel mouse model of diabetic nephropathy. The goal being to uncover new therapeutic avenues for the treatment of CKD, its causes and/or complications.