Connectivity mapping of a chronic kidney disease progression signature identified lysine deacetylases as novel therapeutic targets

Motivation and design: Renal tubulointerstitial injury is an important determinant of chronic kidney disease (CKD) progression, yet treatment is limited to renin angiotensin system blockade. Accordingly, we performed global expression profiling in a 2 × 2 factorial design (N = 8 in each group) on RNA extracted from male Col4a3–/– mice and littermate controls on a 129X1/SvJ background at 4 and 7 weeks of age. Col4a3–/– mice have a mutation in the gene encoding the α3 chain of type IV collagen, associated with proteinuria and progressive loss of kidney function. We analyzed expression with Affymetrix GeneChip Mouse Gene 2.0 ST Arrays and derived a novel CKD progression signature based on aging and disease in Col4a3–/– mice. Using our progression signature, we sought to repurpose existing drugs for the treatment of progressive CKD. Results: Computational drug repurposing with the Connectivity Map identified lysine deacetylase inhibitor, vorinostat, as a novel candidate treatment for this murine model of CKD. Treatment with vorinostat attenuated tubulointerstitial injury, fibrosis, and altered inflammation. Vorinostat administration significantly increased the lifespan of Col4a3–/– mice although effects on urinary albumin excretion, plasma creatinine, and blood urea nitrogen were modest. Conclusions: Our data suggest that expression profiling and computational drug repurposing can be used to identify novel drugs that may reverse gene expression changes in experimental CKD. Lysine deacetylase inhibition may be a novel treatment approach to CKD associated with proteinuria and progressive tubulointerstitial injury. Kidney tissue from 4- and 7-week-old male Col4a3–/– mice and littermate controls was analyzed using Affymetrix GeneChip Mouse Gene 2.0 ST Arrays. A total of 32 mice were studied with 8 mice per group.