Resveratrol-Dependent Down-regulation of Receptor for Advanced Glycation End-products and Oxidative Stress in Kidney of Rats With Diabetes

BACKGROUND: Millions of people in the world have diabetes mellitus and its prevalence is growing. Oxidative stress, advanced glycation end-products (AGEs) and receptor for advanced glycation end-products (RAGE) play key role in the pathogenesis of diabetes. New and safe strategies of remedy are needed for this disease. OBJECTIVES: We hypothesized that resveratrol may exert a renal protective effect on diabetic rats. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Male rats with diabetes were treated with or without resveratrol as 1, 5, 10 mg/kg of body weight for 30 days. The total AGEs and malondialdehyde levels in kidney tissues were determined by spectrofluorimetric method and the insulin level was assayed using ELISA. The total antioxidant capacity contents in kidney and the glucose in plasma were measured by a colorimetric assay. The expression of RAGE was assayed in kidneys of all animals using quantitative PCR. RESULTS: In resveratrol-treated rats with diabetes, malondialdehyde levels, plasma glucose and expression of RAGE were significantly reduced compared with the untreated group. Moreover, the total antioxidant and insulin levels significantly increased in treated rats. There was no significant difference in the AGEs contents among all the groups. CONCLUSIONS: These results revealed that resveratrol has beneficial effects on kidney by extenuating the oxidative stress and down-regulation of RAGE expression.