Neural versus humoral activation of the sympathetic nervous system in renal disease

在健康的身体中，肾脏和交感神经系统共同作用，使我们的血压在短期和长期内保持在正常范围内。当人们患有肾脏疾病时，这个系统就会失效，人们就会患上高血压。高血压会导致心脏病发作和中风，对于已经患有肾脏疾病的人来说，高血压也是一个严重的并发症。以前人们认为这一过程中的主要因素是液体滞留和一种名为血管紧张素II的循环激素，但我们认为交感神经系统也非常重要。此外，我们认为肾脏的感觉神经告诉大脑肾脏有问题，使交感神经系统不适当地升高血压。我们将使用三种不同的肾脏疾病大鼠模型，研究感觉神经和血管紧张素II激素在驱动交感神经系统升高血压方面的相对作用。这些模型之一是一种新的多囊肾病大鼠模型，这是澳大利亚第四大最重要的肾脏疾病原因。我们想要确定大脑的哪些部分在这一途径中是重要的，并将测试阻断两条不同途径(神经和激素)的治疗方法，看看什么是最有效的方法，不仅可以控制血压，还可以减缓肾脏和心脏病的进展。这项工作很重要，因为它不仅有助于我们了解大脑和肾脏是如何相互沟通的，而且还有可能提高肾脏疾病患者的治疗质量。

In the healthy body, the kidney and the sympathetic nervous system work together to keep our blood pressure in the normal range, both in the short and long term. When people have kidney disease, this system fails and people can develop high blood pressure. High blood pressure can lead to heart attack and stroke, and so is a serious complication for people who already have kidney disease. It has previously been believed that major factors in this process are fluid retention and a circulating hormone called angiotensin II, but we believe that the sympathetic nervous system is also very important. Further, we believe that sensory nerves in the kidney tell the brain something is wrong in the kidney, making the sympathetic nervous system increase blood pressure inappropriately. We will examine the relative role of the sensory nerves and the hormone angiotensin II in driving the sympathetic nervous system to increase blood pressure, using three different rat models of kidney disease. One of these models is a new rat model of polycystic kidney disease, which is the fourth most important cause of renal disease in Australia. We want to determine what parts of the brain are important in the pathway, and will also test treatments that block the two different pathways (nerves vs. hormones) to see what is the most effective way of controlling not only blood pressure but also slowing down the progression of kidney and heart disease. This work is important as it will not only help us understand how the brain and kidney communicate with each other, but will also have the potential to improve quality of treatment for people with kidney disease