What tool or method do you wish existed?

We asked researchers from a range of disciplines across biology, engineering, and medicine to describe a current technological need. The goal is to provide a sample of the various technological gaps that exist and inspire future research projects.

A LINE1-Nucleolin Partnership Regulates Early Development and ESC Identity.

Transposable elements represent nearly half of mammalian genomes and are generally described as parasites, or "junk DNA." The LINE1 retrotransposon is the most abundant class and is thought to be deleterious for cells, yet it is paradoxically highly expressed during early development. Here, we report that LINE1 plays essential roles in mouse embryonic stem cells (ESCs) and pre-implantation embryos. In ESCs, LINE1 acts as a nuclear RNA scaffold that recruits Nucleolin and Kap1/Trim28 to repress Dux, the master activator of a transcriptional program specific to the 2-cell embryo. In parallel, LINE1 RNA mediates binding of Nucleolin and Kap1 to rDNA, promoting rRNA synthesis and ESC self-renewal. In embryos, LINE1 RNA is required for Dux silencing, synthesis of rRNA, and exit from the 2-cell stage. The results reveal an essential partnership between LINE1 RNA, Nucleolin, Kap1, and peri-nucleolar chromatin in the regulation of transcription, developmental potency, and ESC self-renewal.

SAFB restricts contact domain boundaries associated with L1 chimeric transcription.

Long interspersed element-1 (LINE-1 or L1) comprises 17% of the human genome, continuously generates genetic variations, and causes disease in certain cases. However, the regulation and function of L1 remain poorly understood. Here, we uncover that L1 can enrich RNA polymerase IIs (RNA Pol IIs), express L1 chimeric transcripts, and create contact domain boundaries in human cells. This impact of L1 is restricted by a nuclear matrix protein scaffold attachment factor B (SAFB) that recognizes transcriptionally active L1s by binding L1 transcripts to inhibit RNA Pol II enrichment. Acute inhibition of RNA Pol II transcription abolishes the domain boundaries associated with L1 chimeric transcripts, indicating a transcription-dependent mechanism. Deleting L1 impairs domain boundary formation, and L1 insertions during evolution have introduced species-specific domain boundaries. Our data show that L1 can create RNA Pol II-enriched regions that alter genome organization and that SAFB regulates L1 and RNA Pol II activity to preserve gene regulation.

RNA Targets Ribogenesis Factor WDR43 to Chromatin for Transcription and Pluripotency Control.

Transcription regulation underlies stem cell function and development. Here, we elucidate an unexpected role of an essential ribogenesis factor, WDR43, as a chromatin-associated RNA-binding protein (RBP) and release factor in modulating the polymerase (Pol) II activity for pluripotency regulation. WDR43 binds prominently to promoter-associated noncoding/nascent RNAs, occupies thousands of gene promoters and enhancers, and interacts with the Pol II machinery in embryonic stem cells (ESCs). Nascent transcripts and transcription recruit WDR43 to active promoters, where WDR43 facilitates releases of the elongation factor P-TEFb and paused Pol II. Knockdown of WDR43 causes genome-wide defects in Pol II release and pluripotency-associated gene expression. Importantly, auxin-mediated rapid degradation of WDR43 drastically reduces Pol II activity, precluding indirect consequences. These results reveal an RNA-mediated recruitment and feedforward regulation on transcription and demonstrate an unforeseen role of an RBP in promoting Pol II elongation and coordinating high-level transcription and translation in ESC pluripotency.

U1 snRNP regulates chromatin retention of noncoding RNAs.

Long noncoding RNAs (lncRNAs) and promoter- or enhancer-associated unstable transcripts locate preferentially to chromatin, where some regulate chromatin structure, transcription and RNA processing1-13. Although several RNA sequences responsible for nuclear localization have been identified-such as repeats in the lncRNA Xist and Alu-like elements in long RNAs14-16-how lncRNAs as a class are enriched at chromatin remains unknown. Here we describe a random, mutagenesis-coupled, high-throughput method that we name 'RNA elements for subcellular localization by sequencing' (mutREL-seq). Using this method, we discovered an RNA motif that recognizes the U1 small nuclear ribonucleoprotein (snRNP) and is essential for the localization of reporter RNAs to chromatin. Across the genome, chromatin-bound lncRNAs are enriched with 5' splice sites and depleted of 3' splice sites, and exhibit high levels of U1 snRNA binding compared with cytoplasm-localized messenger RNAs. Acute depletion of U1 snRNA or of the U1 snRNP protein component SNRNP70 markedly reduces the chromatin association of hundreds of lncRNAs and unstable transcripts, without altering the overall transcription rate in cells. In addition, rapid degradation of SNRNP70 reduces the localization of both nascent and polyadenylated lncRNA transcripts to chromatin, and disrupts the nuclear and genome-wide localization of the lncRNA Malat1. Moreover, U1 snRNP interacts with transcriptionally engaged RNA polymerase II. These results show that U1 snRNP acts widely to tether and mobilize lncRNAs to chromatin in a transcription-dependent manner. Our findings have uncovered a previously unknown role of U1 snRNP beyond the processing of precursor mRNA, and provide molecular insight into how lncRNAs are recruited to regulatory sites to carry out chromatin-associated functions.

Phase separation of RNA-binding protein promotes polymerase binding and transcription.

An RNA-involved phase-separation model has been proposed for transcription control. However, the molecular links that connect RNA to the transcription machinery remain missing. Here we find that RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) constitute half of the chromatin proteome in embryonic stem cells (ESCs), some being colocalized with RNA polymerase (Pol) II at promoters and enhancers. Biochemical analyses of representative RBPs show that the paraspeckle protein PSPC1 inhibits the RNA-induced premature release of Pol II, and makes use of RNA as multivalent molecules to enhance the formation of transcription condensates and subsequent phosphorylation and release of Pol II. This synergistic interplay enhances polymerase engagement and activity via the RNA-binding and phase-separation activities of PSPC1. In ESCs, auxin-induced acute degradation of PSPC1 leads to genome-wide defects in Pol II binding and nascent transcription. We propose that promoter-associated RNAs and their binding proteins synergize the phase separation of polymerase condensates to promote active transcription.

Jumonji modulates polycomb activity and self-renewal versus differentiation of stem cells.

Trimethylation on histone H3 lysine 27 (H3K27me3) by Polycomb repressive complex 2 (PRC2) regulates the balance between self-renewal and differentiation of embryonic stem cells (ESCs). The mechanisms controlling the activity and recruitment of PRC2 are largely unknown. Here we demonstrate that the founding member of the Jumonji family, JMJ (JUMONJI or JARID2), is associated with PRC2, colocalizes with PRC2 and H3K27me3 on chromatin, and modulates PRC2 function. In vitro JMJ inhibits PRC2 methyltransferase activity, consistent with increased H3K27me3 marks at PRC2 targets in Jmj(-/-) ESCs. Paradoxically, JMJ is required for efficient binding of PRC2, indicating that the interplay of PRC2 and JMJ fine-tunes deposition of the H3K27me3 mark. During differentiation, activation of genes marked by H3K27me3 and lineage commitments are delayed in Jmj(-/-) ESCs. Our results demonstrate that dynamic regulation of Polycomb complex activity orchestrated by JMJ balances self-renewal and differentiation, highlighting the involvement of chromatin dynamics in cell-fate transitions.

Synthesis of Two-Dimensional MoO2 Nanoplates with Large Linear Magnetoresistance and Nonlinear Hall Effect.

Two-dimensional (2D) materials with large linear magnetoresistance (LMR) are very interesting owing to their potential application in magnetic storage or sensor devices. Here, we report the synthesis of 2D MoO2 nanoplates grown by a chemical vapor deposition (CVD) method and observe large LMR and nonlinear Hall behavior in MoO2 nanoplates. As-obtained MoO2 nanoplates exhibit rhombic shapes and high crystallinity. Electrical studies indicate that MoO2 nanoplates feature a metallic nature with an excellent conductivity of up to 3.7 × 107 S m-1 at 2.5 K. MoO2 nanoplates display a large LMR of up to 455% at 3 K and -9 T. A thickness-dependent LMR analysis suggests that LMR values increase upon increasing the thickness of nanoplates. Besides, nonlinearity has been found in the magnetic-field-dependent Hall resistance, which decreases with increasing temperatures. Our studies highlight that MoO2 nanoplates are promising materials for fundamental studies and potential applications in magnetic storage devices.

An extended transcriptional network for pluripotency of embryonic stem cells.

Much attention has focused on a small set of transcription factors that maintain human or mouse embryonic stem (ES) cells in a pluripotent state. To gain a more complete understanding of the regulatory network that maintains this state, we identified target promoters of nine transcription factors, including somatic cell reprogramming factors (Oct4, Sox2, Klf4, and c-Myc) and others (Nanog, Dax1, Rex1, Zpf281, and Nac1), on a global scale in mouse ES cells. We found that target genes fall into two classes: promoters bound by few factors tend to be inactive or repressed, whereas promoters bound by more than four factors are largely active in the pluripotent state and become repressed upon differentiation. Furthermore, we propose a transcriptional hierarchy for reprogramming factors and broadly distinguish targets of c-Myc versus other factors. Our data provide a resource for exploration of the complex network maintaining pluripotency.

The lncRNA Hand2os1/Uph locus orchestrates heart development through regulation of precise expression of Hand2.

Exploration and dissection of potential actions and effects of long noncoding RNA (lncRNA) in animals remain challenging. Here, using multiple knockout mouse models and single cell RNA sequencing, we demonstrate that the divergent lncRNA Hand2os1/Uph has a key complex modulatory effect on the expression of its neighboring gene HAND2 and subsequently on heart development and function. Short deletion of the Hand2os1 promoter in mouse diminishes Hand2os1 transcription to ∼8-32%, but fails to affect HAND2 expression and yields no discernable heart phenotypes. Interestingly, full-length deletion of Hand2os1 in mouse causes moderate yet prevalent upregulation of HAND2 in hundreds of cardiac cells, leading to profound biological consequences, including dysregulated cardiac gene programs, congenital heart defects and perinatal lethality. We propose that the Hand2os1 locus dampens HAND2 expression to restrain cardiomyocyte proliferation, thereby orchestrating a balanced development of cardiac cell lineages. This study highlights the regulatory complexity of the lncRNA Hand2os1 on HAND2 expression, emphasizing the need for complementary genetic and single cell approaches to delineate the function and primary molecular effects of an lncRNA in animals.

Pressure pain threshold and somatosensory abnormalities in different ages and functional conditions of post-stroke elderly.

BACKGROUND: Somatosensory deficits and abnormal pain sensitivity are highly prevalent among stroke survivors, which negatively impacts their quality of life and recovery process. However, the factors for pressure pain threshold (PPT) and somatosensory abnormalities in post-stroke elderly remain unknown. The aim of this study was to explore the effects of age, side and other functional conditions, such as spasticity and motor functions, on PPT and sensory abnormalities among elderly after stroke. METHODS: The cross-sectional study finally included 43 post-stroke elderly aged over 60 and assessed the PPT of 14 bilateral muscles widely located in the whole body by using a digital force gage. Meanwhile, spasticity, motor function, joint pain and activity of daily living (ADL) were evaluated by the Modified Ashworth scale, Fugl-Meyer, and Barthel Index, respectively. All participants were divided into higher-aged and lower-aged groups based on the median age of all of them. RESULTS: Higher age tended to be associated with higher sensitivity but not significant except for one upper limb muscle, and the affected side showed significantly higher PPTs than the unaffected side in three out of seven muscles (p < 0.05). Furthermore, the somatosensory abnormalities in the affected side, particularly hypoalgesia, were more frequent in higher-aged than lower-aged patients in most assessed muscles. Meanwhile, patients with spasticity showed more increment of PPTs in affected muscles around the knee joint than patients without spasticity (p < 0.05). Patients with better motor functions, less joint pain and higher ADL performed less bilateral differences of PPTs than other patients in some muscles (p < 0.05). CONCLUSIONS: The age and side differences of mechanical pain sensitivity were found among post-stroke elderly. Older patients show higher sensitivity in both sides compared with the younger ones, and the affected side of the elder shows more somatosensory abnormalities, particularly hypoalgesia, than that of the younger ones. Post-stroke elderly in good functional conditions, such as normal muscle tone, better physical function and daily activities, and less joint pain, seems to have more equal pain sensitivity between both sides than those in poor conditions.

Insight into novel RNA-binding activities via large-scale analysis of lncRNA-bound proteome and IDH1-bound transcriptome.

RNA-binding proteins (RBPs) play pivotal roles in directing RNA fate and function. Yet the current annotation of RBPs is largely limited to proteins carrying known RNA-binding domains. To systematically reveal dynamic RNA-protein interactions, we surveyed the human proteome by a protein array-based approach and identified 671 proteins with RNA-binding activity. Among these proteins, 525 lack annotated RNA-binding domains and are enriched in transcriptional and epigenetic regulators, metabolic enzymes, and small GTPases. Using an improved CLIP (crosslinking and immunoprecipitation) method, we performed genome-wide target profiling of isocitrate dehydrogenase 1 (IDH1), a novel RBP. IDH1 binds to thousands of RNA transcripts with enriched functions in transcription and chromatin regulation, cell cycle and RNA processing. Purified IDH1, but not an oncogenic mutant, binds directly to GA- or AU-rich RNA that are also enriched in IDH1 CLIP targets. Our study provides useful resources of unconventional RBPs and IDH1-bound transcriptome, and convincingly illustrates, for the first time, the in vivo and in vitro RNA targets and binding preferences of IDH1, revealing an unanticipated complexity of RNA regulation in diverse cellular processes.

An Australian tertiary hospital analysis of outpatient dermatology clinical and demographic characteristics.

OBJECTIVES: Literature on dermatology outpatient demographic and clinical data is limited, and the few studies on this topic are mainly conducted overseas, with medical systems and case mix different to Australia. This study presents demographic data relating to dermatology public outpatient referrals to a tertiary hospital in Brisbane, Australia, and determines what additional structured data should be collected to formulate and evaluate initiatives to address service issues such as referral quality, triage process and wait times. METHODS: A four-year retrospective audit was undertaken, summarising all referrals (n = 7140) and clinical dermatology encounters (n = 53 844) between January 2016 and December 2019 at Princess Alexandra Hospital (PAH), the largest hospital in Metro South Health (MSH), serving a population of one million. PAH has one of the two largest public dermatology clinics in Queensland and is the only dermatology service within MSH. RESULTS: Patient demographic data, wait time by triage category, referral rates over time and encounter durations were collected. Structured diagnostic data (e.g. ICD-10 coding) of the provisional diagnosis, comorbidities, medications and the final diagnosis are not collected in a structured format and would be a valuable addition. CONCLUSIONS: The clinical burden of public dermatology is increasing. Both collection and analysis of structured data pertaining to the referrals and encounters are important to help formulate, implement and evaluate initiatives that aim to improve health service provision in this area.

Quality of internet videos related to exercise therapy of ankylosing spondylitis from mainland China : Content analysis.

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this study is to assess the quality and reliability of online videos on ankylosing spondylitis (AS) exercises from the five most popular video websites in China. DESIGN: Cross-sectional and descriptive study. METHODS: We searched the video websites of Youku, Tencent, Tudou, IQiYi, and bilibili on February 15, 2020, using the keywords "Ankylosing spondylitis exercise" "Ankylosing spondylitis rehabilitation" and "Ankylosing spondylitis therapy" A total of 114 videos were included in the study and evaluated according to the Global Quality Scale (GQS) and modified DISCERN tool. RESULTS: According to the GQS, the videos were classified as high quality (12.3%, n = 14), intermediate quality (63.2%, n = 72), and low quality (24.6%, n = 28). Using the modified DISCERN tool, the videos were divided into useless (53.5%, n = 61), useful (35.1%, n = 40), and misleading (11.4%, n = 13). CONCLUSION: The analysis shows that the quality and reliability of online videos related to exercise therapy for Ankylosing spondylitis (AS) should be improved and supervised in China. Hospitals, universities, and medical doctors should make more useful and high-quality videos to provide effective exercise guidance for AS patients.

PRC2 directly methylates GATA4 and represses its transcriptional activity.

Polycomb-repressive complex 2 (PRC2) promotes tissue-specific differentiation by depositing trimethylated histone H3 Lys 27 (H3K27me3) epigenetic marks to silence ectopic gene expression programs. Here, we show that EZH2, the catalytic subunit of PRC2, is required for cardiac morphogenesis. Both in vitro and in fetal hearts, EZH2 interacted with cardiac transcription factor GATA4 and directly methylated it at Lys 299. PRC2 methylation of GATA4 attenuated its transcriptional activity by reducing its interaction with and acetylation by p300. Our results reveal a new mechanism of PRC2-mediated transcriptional repression in which PRC2 methylates a transcription factor to inhibit its transcriptional activity.

Paeoniflorin Attenuates Inflammatory Pain by Inhibiting Microglial Activation and Akt-NF-κB Signaling in the Central Nervous System.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Paeoniflorin (PF) is known to have anti-inflammatory and paregoric effects, but the mechanism underlying its analgesic effect remains unclear. The aim of this study was to clarify the effect of PF on Freund's complete adjuvant (CFA)-induced inflammatory pain and explore the underlying molecular mechanism. METHODS: An inflammatory pain model was established by intraplantar injection of CFA in C57BL/6J mice. After intrathecal injection of PF daily for 8 consecutive days, thermal and mechanical withdrawal thresholds, the levels of inflammatory factors TNF-α, IL-1ß and IL-6, microglial activity, and the expression of Akt-NF-κB signaling pathway in the spinal cord tissue were detected by animal ethological test, cell culture, enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay, immunofluorescence histochemistry, and western blot. RESULTS: PF inhibited the spinal microglial activation in the CFA-induced pain model. The production of proinflammatory cytokines was decreased in the central nervous system after PF treatment both in vivo and in vitro. PF further displayed a remarkable effect on inhibiting the activation of Akt-NF-κB signaling pathway in vivo and in vitro. CONCLUSION: These results suggest that PF is a potential therapeutic agent for inflammatory pain and merits further investigation.

Pharmacological Signatures of the Exenatide Nanoparticles Complex Against Myocardial Ischemia Reperfusion Injury.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Myocardial ischemia/reperfusion (I/R) injury (MI/RI) is a critical cause of death in patients with heart disease. However, the pharmaco-therapeutical outcome for MI/RI remains unsatisfactory. Innovative approaches for enhancing drug sensitivity and recovering myocardial function in MI/RI treatment are urgently needed. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the protective effects of exenatide-loaded poly(L-lysine)-poly(ethylene glycol)-poly(L-lysine) (PLL-PEG-PLL) nanoparticles (NPs) against MI/RI. METHODS: The size of PLL-PEG-PLL NPs and the loading and release rates of exenatide were determined. The in vitro NP cytotoxicity was evaluated using newborn rat cardiomyocytes. Rats pretreated with free exenatide or exenatide/PLL-PEG-PLL polyplexes were subjected to 0.5-h ischemia and 2-h reperfusion in the left anterior descending coronary artery. The histopathologic lesions were assessed using hematoxylin-eosin staining. The general physiological indices, including blood pressure (BP), heart rate (HR), the left ventricular ejection fraction (LVEF) and end-diastolic pressure (LEVDP), and the left ventricular pressure maximal rate of rising (dp/dtmax), were monitored using a non-invasive blood pressure analyzer and color Doppler echocardiography. The antioxidative activity in the myocardial tissue was measured. The myocardial enzymatic activity was further estimated by determining the serum levels of creatine kinase (CK), lactate dehydrogenase (LDH), cardiac troponin T (cTnT), and glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1), as well as the expression of GLP-1R in the myocardial tissue. RESULTS: Exenatide preconditioning attenuated the oxidative stress injury and promoted the myocardial function in I/R-induced myocardial injury, while the application of block copolymer PLL-PEG-PLL as a potential exenatide nanocarrier with sustained release significantly enhanced the bioavailability of exenatide. CONCLUSION: The block copolymer PLL-PEG-PLL may function as a potent exenatide nanocarrier for augmenting pharmacotherapy against MI/RI with unprecedented clinical benefits. Further study is needed to better clarify the underlying mechanisms.

Activation of Nrf2/HO-1 Pathway by Glycogen Synthase Kinase-3ß Inhibition Attenuates Renal Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury in Diabetic Rats.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Diabetes mellitus can exacerbate renal ischemia-reperfusion (I/R) injury (RI/RI). The aim of the present study was to evaluate the protective effect of GSK-3ß inhibition (TDZD-8) on I/R-induced renal injury through the Nrf2/HO-1 pathway in a streptozocin (STZ)-induced diabetic rat model. METHODS: STZ-induced diabetic rats preconditioned with TDZD-8 and ZnPP were subjected to renal I/R. The extent of renal morphologic lesions. Renal function was assessed from blood urea nitrogen (BUN) and serum creatinine (Scr), as determined utlizing commercial kits. Oxidative stress and inflammatory activity in the kidney tissue was estimated from levels of malondialdehyde (MDA), interleukin-10 (IL-10), tumor necrosis factor-α (TNF-α), and nitric oxide (NO), as well as the activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione (GSH) using qRT-PCR and ELISA. The expressions of Nrf2, HO-1, Bcl-2 and NF-κB in the renal tissue were measured by qRT-PCR and western blotting. RESULTS: I/R-induced renal inflammation was reduced significantly by TDZD-8 pretreatment. Preconditioning with TDZD-8 suppressed NF-κB expression and enhanced Bcl-2 expression in the renal tissue. The upregulated level of malondialdehyde (MDA), and reduced activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD) and glutathione (GSH) in I/R-shocked rats were markedly restored by TDZD-8 pretreatment. Furthermore, pretreatment with TDZD-8 enhanced activation of the Nrf2/HO-1 pathway in the renal tissue of diabetic RI/RI rats. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that preconditioning with TDZD-8 may protect the kidney from I/R-induced damage via the activation of the Nrf2/HO-1 pathway in STZ-induced diabetic rats. Further detailed studies are needed to further clarify the underlying mechanisms.

Tissue Concentrations of Vitamin K and Expression of Key Enzymes of Vitamin K Metabolism Are Influenced by Sex and Diet but Not Housing in C57Bl6 Mice.

BACKGROUND: There has been limited characterization of biological variables that impact vitamin K metabolism. This gap in knowledge can limit the translation of data obtained from preclinical animal studies to future human studies. OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to determine the effects of diet, sex, and housing on serum, tissue, and fecal vitamin K concentrations and gene expression in C57BL6 mice during dietary vitamin K manipulation. METHODS: C57BL6 4-mo-old male and female mice were randomly assigned to conventional or suspended-wire cages and fed control [1400 ± 80 µg phylloquinone (PK)/kg] or deficient (31 ± 0.45 µg PK/kg) diets for 28 d in a factorial design. PK and menaquinone (MK) 4 plasma and tissue concentrations were measured by HPLC. Long-chain MKs were measured in all matrices by LC-atmospheric pressure chemical ionization-mass spectrometry. Gene expression was quantified by reverse transcriptase-polymerase chain reaction in the liver, brain, kidney, pancreas, and adipose tissue. RESULTS: Male and female mice responded differently to dietary manipulation in a tissue-dependent manner. In mice fed the control diet, females had ∼3-fold more MK4 in the brain and mesenteric adipose tissue than did males and 100% greater PK concentrations in the liver, kidney, and mesenteric adipose tissue than did males. In mice fed the deficient diet, kidney MK4 concentrations were ∼4-fold greater in females than in males, and there were no differences in other tissues. Males and females differed in the expression of vitamin K expoxide reductase complex 1 (Vkorc1) in mesenteric adipose tissue and the pancreas and ubiA domain-containing protein 1 (Ubiad1) in the kidney and brain. There was no effect of housing on serum, tissue, or fecal concentrations of any vitamin K form. CONCLUSIONS: Vitamin K concentrations and expression of key metabolic enzymes differ between male and female mice and in response to the dietary PK concentration. Identifying factors that may impact study design and outcomes of interest is critical to optimize study parameters examining vitamin K metabolism in animal models.

GSK-3beta Inhibitor Induces Expression of Nrf2/TrxR2 Signaling Pathway to Protect against Renal Ischemia/Reperfusion Injury in Diabetic Rats.

BACKGROUND/AIMS: Diabetes mellitus (DM) can lead to renal damage and dysfunction, and exacerbate renal ischemia/reperfusion injury (RI/RI). The aim of this study was to investigate the protective effect of GSK-3ß inhibitor TDZD-8 against RI/RI through Nrf2/TrxR2 signaling pathway in a rat DM model. METHODS: A DM rat model was established by a single injection of streptozocin. Diabetic rats were pretreated with TDZD-8 (1 mg/kg bw) or TDZD-8+auranofin (10 nmol/L, 5ml/kg bw), and then subjected to 45-min ischemia and 24-h reperfusion. Rats were equally randomized into four groups: a Sham-operated group, a RI/RI group, a TDZD-8 group, and a TDZD-8+auranofin group. Serum levels of BUN and Scr were measured. SOD activity, MDA content, and Nrf2, TrxR2 and caspase-3 expressions in rat kidney tissues were determined. RESULTS: Renal function was improved, oxidative stress and cell apoptosis were reduced, and the expression of Nrf2 and TrxR2 was up-regulated in TDZD-8 treated rats as compared with those in auranofin treated rats. CONCLUSION: TDZD-8 may exert its protective effect against RI/RI by regulating the Nrf2/TrxR2 signaling pathway in the kidney tissue in DM.