Dickkopf-1 Acts as a Profibrotic Mediator in Progressive Chronic Kidney Disease

Chronic kidney disease (CKD) is a serious public health problem. Due to a high variability in the speed of CKD progression to end-stage renal disease (ESRD) and the critical involvement of Wnt/β-catenin signaling in CKD, we investigated the role of the Wnt antagonist Dickkopf-1 (DKK1) in CKD progression. Our data revealed that patients with CKD stages 4–5 had higher DKK1 levels in their serum and renal tissues than the control subjects. In an 8-year follow-up, the serum DKK1-high group in the enrolled CKD patients showed a faster progression to ESRD than the serum DKK1-low group. Using a rat model of 5/6 nephrectomy (Nx)-induced CKD, we consistently detected elevated serum levels and renal production of DKK1 in 5/6 Nx rats compared to sham-operated rats. Importantly, the knockdown of the DKK1 levels in the 5/6 Nx rats markedly attenuated the CKD-associated phenotypes. Mechanistically, we demonstrated that the treatment of mouse mesangial cells with recombinant DKK1 protein induced not only the production of multiple fibrogenic proteins, but also the expression of endogenous DKK1. Collectively, our findings suggest that DKK1 acts as a profibrotic mediator in CKD, and elevated levels of serum DKK1 may be an independent predictor of faster disease progression to ESRD in patients with advanced CKD.