in db/db Mice

Copyright © 2015 Jung-Woo Seo et al. This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited. Chronic low-grade inflammation is an important factor in the pathogenesis of diabetic complication. Mycophenolate mofetil (MMF) has an anti-inflammatory effect, inhibiting lymphocyte proliferation. Previous studies showed attenuation of diabetic nephropathy with MMF, but the underlying mechanisms were unclear. This study aimed to identify the effect of MMF on diabetic nephropathy and investigate its action mechanisms in type 2 diabetic mice model. Eight-week-old db/db and control mice (db/m mice) received vehicle or MMF at a dose of 30mg/kg/day for 12 weeks. MMF-treated diabetic mice showed decreased albuminuria, attenuated mesangial expansion, and profibrotic mRNA expressions despite the high glucose level.The number of infiltrated CD4+ and CD8+ T cells in the kidney was significantly decreased in MMF-treated db/db mice and it resulted in attenuating elevated intrarenal TNF