Article Exogenous Carbon Monoxide Decreases Sepsis-Induced Acute Kidney Injury and Inhibits NLRP3 Inflammasome Activation in Rats

Abstract: Carbon monoxide (CO) has shown various physiological effects including anti-inflammatory activity in several diseases, whereas the therapeutic efficacy of CO on sepsis-induced acute kidney injury (AKI) has not been reported as of yet. The purpose of the present study was to explore the effects of exogenous CO on sepsis-induced AKI and nucleotide-binding domain-like receptor protein 3 (NLRP3) inflammasome activation in rats. Male rats were subjected to cecal ligation and puncture (CLP) to induce sepsis and AKI. Exogenous CO delivered from CO-releasing molecule 2 (CORM-2) was used intraperitoneally as intervention after CLP surgery. Therapeutic effects of CORM-2 on sepsis-induced AKI were assessed by measuring serum creatinine (Scr) and blood urea nitrogen (BUN), kidney histology scores, apoptotic cell scores, oxidative stress, levels of cytokines TNF-α and IL-1β, and NLRP3 inflammasome expression. CORM-2 treatmen