Alterations in skin structure and function are very common in uremic patients, but still there is no unifying hypothesis for uremic skin disorders. Fibroblast growth factor-23 (FGF-23) deficiency has Show more
Alterations in skin structure and function are very common in uremic patients, but still there is no unifying hypothesis for uremic skin disorders. Fibroblast growth factor-23 (FGF-23) deficiency has been linked to skin disorders in non-uremic animals. We aimed to study alterations in FGF-23 and fibroblast growth factor-23 receptor 1 (FGFR1) expression in uremic rat skins. Wistar albino rats were divided into two groups: sham group (SG, n = 8) and uremic group (UG, n = 8). Uremia was induced by reduction of the total kidney mass in the UG. Animals were sacrificed after 14 weeks of the follow-up. Serum creatinine and blood urea nitrogen levels in the UG increased significantly, compared to the SG, at the end of the experiment (0.69 ± 0.08 vs. 0.3 ± 0.04 Mann-Whitney U test (MWU), p = 0,003 and 55.2 ± 8.9 vs. 29.6 ± 6.8 MWU, p = 0.002, respectively). Serum FGF-23 level in the UG was increased non-significantly, compared to the SG (53.5 ± 20.9 vs. 37.2 ± 9.7 MWU, p = 0.072), whereas serum 1,25(OH) This study shows increased FGF-23 levels and FGFR1 expression in uremic rat skins. It deserves further study to fully place this finding in the pathophysiology and clinical picture of uremic skin diseases. Show less