%0 Journal Article
%T α-Mangostin reduces hypertension in spontaneously hypertensive rats and inhibits EMT and fibrosis in Ang II-induced HK-2 cells.
%A Xu Y
%A Wu J
%A Gao L
%A Lin H
%A Yang Z
%A Liu X
%A Niu Y
%J Int J Med Sci
%V 21
%N 9
%D 2024
%M 39006850
%F 3.642
%R 10.7150/ijms.94236
%X Hypertension affects a large number of individuals globally and is a common cause of nephropathy, stroke, ischaemic heart disease and other vascular diseases. While many anti-hypertensive medications are used safely and effectively in clinic practice, controlling hypertensive complications solely by reducing blood pressure (BP) can be challenging. α-Mangostin, a xanthone molecule extracted from the pericarp of Garcinia mangostana L., has shown various beneficial effects such as anti-tumor, anti-hyperuricemia, and anti-inflammatory properties. However, the effects of α-Mangostin on hypertension remain unknown. In this study, we observed that α-Mangostin significantly decreased systolic and diastolic blood pressure in spontaneously hypertensive rats (SHR), possibly through the down-regulation of angiotensin II (Ang II). We also identified early markers of hypertensive nephropathy, including urinary N-acetyl-β-D-glucosaminidase (NAG) and β2-microglobulin (β2-MG), which were reduced by α-Mangostin treatment. Mechanistic studies suggested that α-Mangostin may inhibit renal tubular epithelial-to-mesenchymal transformation (EMT) by down-regulating the TGF-β signaling pathway, thus potentially offering a new therapeutic approach for hypertension and hypertensive nephropathy.