Effects of Shizhifang on NLRP3 Inflammasome Activation and Renal Tubular Injury in Hyperuricemic Rats

OBJECTIVE: Uric acid (UA) activates the NLRP3-ASC-caspase-1 axis and triggers cascade inflammatory that leads to hyperuricemic nephropathy and hyperuricemia-induced renal tubular injury. The original study aims to verify the positive effects of the traditional Chinese medicinal formula Shizhifang (SZF) on ameliorating the hyperuricemia, tubular injury, and inflammasome infiltration in the kidneys of hyperuricemic lab rats. METHOD: Twenty-eight male Sprague-Dawley rats were divided into four groups: control group, oxonic acid potassium (OA) model group, OA + SZF group, and OA + Allopurinol group. We evaluated the mediating effects of SZF on renal mitochondrial reactive oxygen species (ROS) and oxidative stress (OS) products, protein expression of NLRP3-ASC-caspase-1 axis, and downstream inflammatory factors IL-1β and IL-18 after 7 weeks of animals feeding. RESULT: SZF alleviated OA-induced hyperuricemia and inhibited OS in hyperuricemic rats (P < 0.05). SZF effectively suppressed the expression of gene and protein of the NLRP3-ASC-caspase-1 axis through accommodating the ROS-TXNIP pathway (P < 0.05). CONCLUSION: Our data suggest that SZF alleviates renal tubular injury and inflammation infiltration by inhibiting NLRP3 inflammasome activation triggered by mitochondrial ROS in the kidneys of hyperuricemic lab rats.