Renin-Angiotensin System Inhibition Alters Triacylglycerol Metabolism in Diabetic Kidney Disease

Lipids are essential metabolites with diverse functions impacting physiology. We recently identified several lipidomic abnormalities in diabetic kidney disease (DKD), including remodeling of triacylglycerol (TAG) fatty acid composition to increase availability of long, polyunsaturated TAGs. Using the BKS eNOS-/- db/db diabetic mouse model, we studied the effect of renin-angiotensin system (RAS) inhibition with combination treatment of lisinopril (20 mg/kg/d) and losartan (30 mg/kg/d) for 12 weeks, an intervention which ameliorates DKD in this mouse model without impacting glycemia. We examined the kidney cortical lipidome to identify lipid alterations that may be pathogenic in DKD. As expected, RAS inhibition did not significantly alter glycemic control or total plasma triglycerides or cholesterol, but decreased the 24-hour urine albumin/creatinine ratio (2564 vs. 615 μg/mg creatinine) and decreased the glomerular periodic acid-Schiff stained area by 13% (p