CHED 906 |
| Tissue transglutaminase (tTg) catalyzes the formation of intermolecular å-(ã-glutamyl) lysine isopeptide bonds. It is hypothesized that tTg is found in greater concentrations in the tissue of diabetics leading to dramatic increases in crosslinks in the extracellular matrix proteins, rendering it resistant to degradation. Based on previous studies, tTg has been postulated to play a role in the scaring of kidney tissue. An animal model for type 2 diabetes was tested through the inspection of trichrome and H&E-stained rat kidney tissue slides for structural and diameter differences, and for severity of damage. The diameters of diabetic specimens were statistically larger when compared to age-matched controls as early as 2 months of age. These results prompted the current study, which involves semi-quantitative scoring of the severity of the damage. The clinical relevance is that the morphological changes may be a future predictor of the pathogenesis of diabetic nephropathy.
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Undergraduate Research Poster Session: Biochemistry
2:00 PM-4:00 PM, Monday, March 26, 2007 Hyatt Regency Chicago -- Riverside Center, Poster
Division of Chemical Education |