Short-Term: Cellular Metabolism and Gene Expression During the Onset of Diabetic Kidney Disease: A Diabetes Mellitus Experimental Model

Diabetes is a chronic disease with a rising global prevalence. Research focuses on understanding its metabolic implications and early signaling of disease onset and complications, particularly the interconnected effects on the kidneys and brain. The objective of this study was to evaluate the expression profile in the genes <i>Mct1</i>, <i>Mct4</i>, <i>Cd147</i>, <i>Hif-1α</i> and <i>Vegf</i> for different biological matrices in rats induced to diabetes in the determined periods of 7, 21, 30 and 40 days. Methods: Wistar rats (160-180g, <i>n</i> = 68), divided into sham and diabetic groups, were evaluated according to tissue samples from the brain and kidney, using classical biochemical analyses and assessing temporal intergroup differential gene expression by qPCR. Additionally, immunohistochemical analysis was performed on kidney samples to evaluate collagen deposition. In the renal tissues, we observed a decrease in the expression of <i>Hif-1α</i> (21 vs. 30 days) and <i>Vegf</i> (21 vs. 40 days), accompanied by an increase in collagen deposition. In the brain, alterations were observed in all evaluated genes when comparing the early group (7 days) to the later groups (30 and 40 days). We observed that the evaluated genes, as well as the collagen deposition analyzed by immunohistochemistry, are related to metabolic changes that, over time, contribute to the worsening of diabetes and the progression of secondary diseases directly and/or indirectly involving the studied tissues.