The role of Dicer in the progression of chronic kidney disease and search for new therapeutic targets

Research Project

Project/Area Number	18K08197
Research Category	Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
Allocation Type	Multi-year Fund
Section	一般
Review Section	Basic Section 53040:Nephrology-related
Research Institution	Asahikawa Medical College
Principal Investigator	Naoki Nakagawa 旭川医科大学, 医学部, 准教授 (10451460)
Project Period (FY)	2018-04-01 – 2022-03-31
Project Status	Completed (Fiscal Year 2021)
Budget Amount *help	¥4,290,000 (Direct Cost: ¥3,300,000、Indirect Cost: ¥990,000) Fiscal Year 2020: ¥1,170,000 (Direct Cost: ¥900,000、Indirect Cost: ¥270,000) Fiscal Year 2019: ¥1,170,000 (Direct Cost: ¥900,000、Indirect Cost: ¥270,000) Fiscal Year 2018: ¥1,950,000 (Direct Cost: ¥1,500,000、Indirect Cost: ¥450,000)
Keywords	慢性腎臓病 / 線維化 / microRNA / 血管周細胞
Outline of Final Research Achievements	The purpose of this study is to explore the pathogenic mechanism and and new therapeutic targets of "Chronic kidney disease (CKD)", which is attracting attention as a new national disease. By focusing on the role of Dicer, which is an RNase that processes precursor of microRNAs, in PDGFRβ-positive cells and elucidating the mechanism of cytotoxicity in the progression of CKD, we searched for new biomarkers and new therapeutic targets. Studies using PDGFRβ-positive cell-specific Dicer-deficient mice revealed that the miR-9-5-p/Pdgfrb system is involved as a key target in the progression of renal interstitial fibrosis.
Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements	新たな国民病として注目されている「慢性腎臓病（Chronic kidney disease: CKD）」の新たな治療標的の候補因子が抽出されてきており、国民の健康寿命延伸、QOL維持向上に寄与し得る社会的意義の高い研究成果が得られている。