Obesity has been recognized as a major risk factor for chronic kidney disease, but the underlying mechanism remains elusive. Here, we investigated the mechanism whereby long-term high-fat diet (HFD) feeding induces renal injury in mice. The C57BL/6 mice fed HFD for 16 weeks developed obesity, diabetes, and kidney dysfunction manifested by albuminuria and blood accumulation of BUN and creatinine. The HFD-fed kidney showed marked glomerular and tubular injuries, including prominent defects in the glomerular filtration barrier and increased tubular cell apoptosis. Mechanistically, HFD feeding markedly increased triglyceride and cholesterol contents in the kidney and activated lipogenic pathways for cholesterol and triglyceride synthesis. HFD feeding also increased oxidative stress and induced mitochondrial fission in tubular cells, thereby activating the pro-apoptotic pathway. In HK-2 and mesangial cell cultures, high glucose, fatty acid, and TNF-α combination was able to activate the lipogenic pathways, increase oxidative stress, promote mitochondrial fission, and activate the pro-apoptotic pathway, all of which could be attenuated by an inhibitor that depleted reactive oxygen species. Taken together, these observations suggest that long-term HFD feeding causes kidney injury at least in part as a result of tissue lipid accumulation, increased oxidative stress, and mitochondrial dysfunction, which promote excess programmed cell death.
Titanium dioxide (TiO2) has been developed and applied extensively in the form of coatings, in particular for its unique properties such as non-toxicity, high photocatalytic activity, and strong self-cleaning ability. These coatings, which can be prepared via various processes, have not yet been proved to be antimicrobial. This research involves an arc ion plating method to produce TiO2 film on medical grade AISI 304 stainless steel. Antimicrobial efficacy of the deposits is expected due to the photocatalysis action of the anatase phase presented in the deposit. The performance of the coating is evaluated by a JIS Z2801:2000 industrial standard. Experimental results show that TiO2 film mainly consisting of anatase structure can be prepared with a high growth rate of 5 microm/h. Antimicrobial activity (R) of the deposited TiO2 film against Staphylococcus aureus and Escherichia coli was 3.0 and 2.5, respectively, far beyond the value designated in JIS standard. This provides an effective antimicrobial surface coating method for medical implements thereby reducing the risk of hospital-acquired infections.
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