Quantification of norepinephrine and its metabolites in the plasma of renal failure models

Abstract

Background/aims: The plasma concentration of catecholamines and their metabolites generated by catechol-O-methyl transferase (COMT) were measured and their correlation with the progress of renal dysfunction was investigated in two distinctive animal models: a 5/6 nephrectomized Sprague-Dawley rat model and a 1/2 nephrectomized diabetic fatty Zucker rat model.

Methods: A highly sensitive, high-performance liquid chromatography-peroxyoxalate chemiluminescence reaction detection was employed to obtain values for the ratio [NMN]/([NE] + [NMN]), where [NE] represents the plasma concentration of norepinephrine and [NMN] represents the plasma concentration of normetanephrine.

Results: The [NMN]/([NE] + [NMN]) ratio correlated with both the increase in blood urea nitrogen concentration and the decrease in creatinine clearance.

Conclusion: The [NMN]/([NE] + [NMN]) ratio represents a quantitative indicator of the progress of renal dysfunction in the animal models. Regulation of COMT activity seemed to relate with the progress of renal dysfunction.