Human Polycystin-2 Transgene Dose-Dependently Rescues ADPKD Phenotypes in Pkd2 Mutant Mice

Although much is known about the molecular genetic mechanisms of autosomal-dominant polycystic kidney disease (ADPKD), few effective treatment is currently available. Here, we explore the in vivo effects of causal gene replacement in orthologous gene models of ADPKD in mice. Wild-type mice with human PKD2 transgene (PKD2tg) overexpressed polycystin (PC)-2 in several tissues, including the kidney and liver, and showed no significant cyst formation in either organ. We cross-mated PKD2tg with a Pkd2-null mouse model, which is embryonically lethal and forms renal and pancreatic cysts. Pkd2−/− mice with human PKD2 transgene (Pkd2−/−;PKD2tg) were born in expected Mendelian ratios, indicating that the embryonic lethality of the Pkd2−/− mice was rescued. Pkd2−/−;PKD2tg mice survived up to 12 months and exhibited moderate to severe cystic phenotypes of the kidney, liver, and pancreas. Moreover, Pkd2−/− mice with homozygous PKD2tg-transgene alleles (Pkd2−/−;PKD2tg/tg) showed significant further amelioration of the cystic severity compared to that in Pkd2−/− mice with a hemizygous PKD2tg allele (Pkd2−/−;PKD2tg), suggesting that the ADPKD phenotype was improved by increased transgene dosage. On further analysis, cystic improvement mainly resulted from reduced proliferation, rather apoptosis, of cyst-prone epithelial cells in the mouse model. The finding that the functional restoration of human PC2 significantly rescued ADPKD phenotypes in a dose-dependent manner suggests that increasing PC2 activity may be beneficial in some forms of ADPKD.