Diabetic kidney disease (DKD) with increasing global prevalence lacks effective therapeutic targets to halt or reverse its progression. Therapeutic targets supported by causal genetic evidence are more likely to succeed in randomized clinical trials. In this study, we integrated large-scale plasma proteomics, genetic-driven causal inference, and experimental validation to identify prioritized targets for DKD using the UK Biobank (UKB) and FinnGen cohorts. Among 2844 diabetic patients (528 with DKD), we identified 37 targets significantly associated with incident DKD, supported by both observational and causal evidence. Of these, 22% (8/37) of the potential targets are currently under investigation for DKD or other diseases. Our prospective study confirmed that higher levels of three prioritized targets-insulin-like growth factor binding protein 4 (IGFBP4), family with sequence similarity 3 member C (FAM3C), and prostaglandin D2 synthase (PTGDS)-were associated with a 4.35, 3.51, and 3.57-fold increased likelihood of developing DKD, respectively. In addition, population-level protein-altering variants (PAVs) analysis and in vitro experiments cross-validated FAM3C and IGFBP4 as potential new target candidates for DKD, through the classic NLR family pyrin domain containing 3 (NLRP3)-caspase-1-gasdermin D (GSDMD) apoptotic axis. Our results demonstrate that integrating omics data mining with causal inference may be a promising strategy for prioritizing therapeutic targets.

Diabetic kidney disease(DKD)with increasing global prevalence lacks effective therapeutic targets to halt or reverse its progression.Therapeutic targets supported by causal genetic evidence are more likely to succeed in randomized clinical trials.In this study,we integrated large-scale plasma proteomics,genetic-driven causal inference,and experimental validation to identify prioritized targets for DKD using the UK Biobank(UKB)and FinnGen cohorts.Among 2844 diabetic patients(528 with DKD),we identified 37 targets significantly associated with incident DKD,supported by both observational and causal evi-dence.Of these,22％(8/37)of the potential targets are currently under investigation for DKD or other diseases.Our prospective study confirmed that higher levels of three prioritized targets-insulin-like growth factor binding protein 4(IGFBP4),family with sequence similarity 3 member C(FAM3C),and prostaglandin D2 synthase(PTGDS)—were associated with a 4.35,3.51,and 3.57-fold increased likeli-hood of developing DKD,respectively.In addition,population-level protein-altering variants(PAVs)analysis and in vitro experiments cross-validated FAM3C and IGFBP4 as potential new target candidates for DKD,through the classic NLR family pyrin domain containing 3(NLRP3)-caspase-1-gasdermin D(GSDMD)apoptotic axis.Our results demonstrate that integrating omics data mining with causal inference may be a promising strategy for prioritizing therapeutic targets.

Objective:To explore the protective effect of puerarin on hypoxia/reoxygenation (H/R)-induced acute kidney injury(AKI)in vitro.Methods:HK-2 cells were treated with H/R for simulating ischemia reperfusion injury(IRI)in vivo. The experimental groups included control group, H/R treatment group(0/6/12/24 h), H/R 24 h + puerarin treatment group(puerarin, Pue), H/R 24 h + Pue+ 3-methyladenine(3-MA)treatment group and H/R 24 h+ 3-MA treatment group. Immunoblotting was employed for detecting the expression changes of autophagy-related proteins, CCK-8 for examining cell proliferation, electron microscopy for observing autophagosome formation and TUNEL for detecting apoptosis.Results:As compared with control group, the expression of LC3-II rose in H/R 24 h group, the expression of autophagy marker P62 declined, count of autophagosome increased, cell viability decreased and cellular inflammation occurred. Puerarin had similar effects to 3-MA. As compared with H/R 24 h group, puerarin could reverse the changes in the expression levels of LC3 and P62 induced by H/R( P<0.05). There were greater cell viability, reduced autophagosome count and lessened cell apoptosis( P<0.05). At the same time, protein expression levels of HMGB1, TLR4 and NF-κB dropped( P<0.05). Conclusions:Puerarin suppresses autophagy through HMGB1/TLR4/NF-κB axis for lessening ischemia-reperfusion injury an in vitro model.

Objective In order to determine the effect of colchicine(Col) on the changes of serum activity of tumour necrosis factor (TNF) induced by lipopolysaccharide(LPS) in rabbits.Methods Twelve New Zealand white rabbits were equally divided into 2 groups, namely group A and group B. Rabbits in group A were intravenously administered with 0.2ml/ kg of normal saline (NS) from 67h before LPS inje ction, while those in group B were given 0.5mg/ kg of Col instead of NS at the same time course.Endotoxic shock was induced by intravevous injection of 2?g/ kg of LPS after the challenge by Bacillus Calmette Gu?rin(BCG). Results Prior infusion of Col significantly decreased the peak levels of serum TNF activity ( P