Narciclasine attenuates sepsis-associated acute kidney injury through the ESR1/S100A11 axis.

Narciclasine (Ncs) was effective in sepsis management due to its antioxidant properties. The present study dissected the protective effects of Ncs against sepsis-associated acute kidney injury (SA-AKI) and the molecular mechanisms. The SA-AKI mice were developed using cecum ligation and puncture and pretreated with Ncs and adenoviruses. Human renal microvascular endothelial cells (RMECs) were induced with LPS and treated with Ncs. Ncs alleviated proximal tubular dilatation, interstitial widening, and necrosis in renal tissues and reduced the renal injury marker and pro-inflammatory cytokine levels in the serum of SA-AKI mice. Ncs promoted the expression of ZO-1, VE-cadherin, and CD31 and the activities of SOD, GSH-Px, and CAT, and inhibited the levels of pro-inflammatory cytokines, and apoptosis rate in LPS-treated RMECs. Estrogen receptor 1 (ESR1) was a target protein of Ncs, and S100 calcium-binding protein A11 (S100A11) was a target of the transcription factor ESR1. Ncs blocked transcription of S100A11 by inhibiting ESR1. Silencing of S100A11 overturned the deteriorating effects of ESR1 overexpression on SA-AKI progression in vivo and RMEC injury in vitro. These findings suggest that Ncs may ameliorate SA-AKI by repressing the ESR1/S100A11 signaling, providing a novel perspective for research on SA-AKI.
Competing Interests: Declarations. Ethics approval: All experimental operations were conducted following the NIH Guide for the Care and Use of Laboratory Animals and approved by the Laboratory Animal Ethics Committee of Affiliated Hospital of Integrated Traditional Chinese and Western Medicine, Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine. Consent for publication: Not applicable. Conflict of interest: The authors declare no competing interests.
(© 2025. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)