[The role of smooth muscle alpha-actin in development of renal fibrosis in patients with chronic glomerulonephritis].

Abstract To estimate expression of smooth muscle alpha-actin (a-SMA) in renal glomeruli and interstitium of patients with chronic glomerulonephritis (CGN) for assessment of the disease progression and prognosis. Expression of a-SMA in renal tissue was studied immunohistochemically, area of the interstitium and the degree of its interstitial inflammatory infiltration were investigated morphometrically in 45 biopsy specimens of renal tissue from patients with different morphological types of CGN and 7 specimens of normal renal tissue. a-SMA expression in the glomeruli was higher in patients with proliferative morphological forms of CGN [34.3% (26.1-40.6)] than in patients with nonproliferative nephritis forms [22.3% (18.5-22.3)], p