Renal and systemic acid-base effects of the chronic administration of hypercalcemia-producing agents: calcitriol, PTH, and intravenous calcium

Calcium Sensing in the Renal Tubule

In addition to its prominent role in the parathyroid gland, the calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR) is expressed in various tissues, including the kidney. This article reviews current data on the calcium-sensing properties of the kidney, the localization of the CaSR protein along the nephron, and its function in calcium homeostasis and in hypercalciuria.

New functional aspects of the extracellular calcium-sensing receptor

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

Variations in extracellular calcium level have a large impact on kidney function. Most of the effects seen are attributed to the calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR), a widely expressed G-protein-coupled cell surface protein with an important function in bone mineral homeostasis. The purpose of this review is to recapitulate the novel functional aspects of CaSR.

RECENT FINDINGS

Results from mouse models demonstrate important functions for CaSR in various tissues. In the kidney, the main role of CaSR is the regulation of calcium reabsorption in the thick ascending limb, independently of its role on parathyroid hormone secretion. CaSR modulates claudin 14, the gatekeeper of paracellular ion transport in the thick ascending limb that is associated with urinary calcium excretion. One intracellular signaling pathway by which CaSR alters tight junction permeability is the calcineurin-NFAT1c-microRNA-claudin14 axis.

SUMMARY

The main function of CaSR in the kidney is the regulation of calcium excretion in the thick ascending limb, independently of parathyroid hormone. CaSR modulates paracellular cation transport by altering expression of the tight junction protein claudin 14. Still more work is needed to fully understand all functions of CaSR in the kidney. Alternative pathways of calcium 'sensing' in the kidney need to be investigated.

Calcium-sensing in the kidney

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

Changes in extracellular calcium concentration affect several functions of the renal tubule. The calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR), initially identified in the parathyroid gland cells, is also expressed in the kidney and was assumed to mediate all effects of extracellular calcium on the renal tubule. The purpose of this review is to critically review the evidence supporting this assumption.

RECENT FINDINGS

Recent results confirm that, in the kidney, the CaSR is mainly expressed in the thick ascending limb of the loop of Henle. There, it is involved in the control of calcium reabsorption, independently of its action on parathyroid hormone secretion, through an effect on the paracellular pathway permeability. Although extracellular calcium affects transports other than that of calcium, the direct evidence that CaSR is involved in these effects is still lacking in many instances.

SUMMARY

As the CaSR in the kidney controls calcium reabsorption and excretion and subsequently affects blood calcium concentration, agonists and antagonists of the CaSR could be used to control blood calcium concentration in patients who have lost their ability to regulate parathyroid hormone secretion. In addition, more work is needed to further decipher the molecular mechanisms through which CaSR determines calcium transport in the loop of Henle.

Calcium-sensing receptor stimulates luminal K+-dependent H+ excretion in medullary thick ascending limbs of Henle's loop of mouse kidney

The calcium-sensing receptor (CaSR) is known well as a sensor of extracellular calcium for regulating parathyroid hormone secretion. CaSR is located along all nephron segments in the kidney. While hypercalcemia strongly enhances urinary acidification, the relationship between CaSR and acid-base metabolism in the kidney is still uncertain. In the present study, we examined whether CaSR activation caused acid secretion in the medullary thick ascending limb (mTAL), which is one of the major nephron segments involved in both mineral and acid-base regulation. The effects of a potent calcimimetic neomycin (Neo) on intracellular pH (pHi) were analyzed in the in vitro miroperfused mouse mTALs. The mTALs were incubated with 2,7-bis-(2-carboxyethyl)-5(6)-carboxyfluoresceine-acetoxymethylester (BCECF-AM) for microfluorescent pHi measurements. In HCO(3)(-)/CO(2)-buffered solution, the steady-state pHi was 7.17 +/- 0.01 (n = 19). Basolateral Neo at 0.4 mM in basolateral side significantly alkalinized the mTAL cells to 7.28 +/- 0.02 (n = 19), while Neo in the lumen had no effect on pHi. Neo in the basolateral side alkalinized the mTALs in the absence of ambient Na(+) and the presence of H(+)-ATPase inhibitor bafilomycin in the lumen, indicating that the effect of Neo is unrelated to Na(+)-dependent acid-base transporters such as Na(+)-H(+) exchangers and Na(+)-HCO(3)(-) cotransporter, or to luminal H(+)-ATPase. In contrast, the effect of Neo on pHi was inhibited by K(+) removal or treatment with specific H(+)-K(+)-ATPase (HKa) inhibitors, ouabain and Sch-28080, in the lumen. Our results suggest that hypercalcemia induces urinary acidification partly by stimulating luminal K(+)-dependent H(+)-excretion via CaSR in mouse mTALs.

Salt and acid-base metabolism in claudin-16 knockdown mice: impact for the pathophysiology of FHHNC patients

Claudin-16 is defective in familial hypomagnesemia with hypercalciuria and nephrocalcinosis (FHHNC). Claudin-16 knockdown (CLDN16 KD) mice show reduced cation selectivity in the thick ascending limb. The defect leads to a collapse of the lumen-positive diffusion voltage, which drives Ca(2+) and Mg(2+) absorption. Because of the reduced tight junction permeability ratio for Na(+) over Cl(-), we proposed a backleak of NaCl into the lumen. Systemic analysis had revealed lower blood pressure and a moderately increased plasma aldosterone concentration. In this study, we measured the amiloride-sensitive equivalent short-circuit current in isolated, perfused collecting ducts and found it increased by fivefold in CLDN16 KD mice compared with wild-type (WT) mice. Amiloride treatment unmasked renal Na(+) loss in the thick ascending limb of the nephron. Under amiloride treatment, CLDN16 KD mice developed hyponatremia and the renal fractional excretion of Na(+) was twofold higher in CLDN16 KD compared with WT mice. The loss of claudin-16 also resulted in increased urinary flow, reduced HCO(3)(-) excretion, and lower urine pH. We conclude that perturbation in salt and acid-base metabolism in CLDN16 KD mice has its origin in the defective cation permselectivity of the thick ascending limb of the nephron. This study has contributed to the still incomplete understanding of the symptoms of FHHNC patients.

Vacuolar H+-ATPase expression is increased in acid-secreting intercalated cells in kidneys of rats with hypercalcaemia-induced alkalosis

AIMS

Hypercalcaemia is known to be associated with systemic metabolic alkalosis, although the underlying mechanism is uncertain. Therefore, we aimed to examine whether hypercalcaemia was associated with changes in the expression of acid-base transporters in the kidney.

METHODS

Rats were infused with human parathyroid hormone (PTH, 15 microg kg(-1) day(-1)), or vehicle for 48 h using osmotic minipumps.

RESULTS

The rats treated with PTH developed hypercalcaemia and exhibited metabolic alkalosis (arterial HCO: 31.1 +/- 0.8 vs. 28.1 +/- 0.8 mmol L(-1) in controls, P < 0.05, n = 6), whereas the urine pH of 6.85 +/- 0.1 was significantly decreased compared with the pH of 7.38 +/- 0.1 in controls (P < 0.05, n = 12). The observed alkalosis was associated with a significantly increased expression of the B1-subunit of the H(+)-ATPase in kidney inner medulla (IM, 233 +/- 45% of the control level). In contrast, electroneutral Na(+)-HCO cotransporter NBCn1 and Cl(-)/HCO anion exchanger AE2 expression was markedly reduced in the inner stripe of the outer medulla (to 26 +/- 9% and 65 +/- 6%, respectively). These findings were verified by immunohistochemistry.

CONCLUSIONS

(1) hypercalcaemia-induced metabolic alkalosis was associated with increased urinary excretion of H(+); (2) the increased H(+)-ATPase expression in IM may partly explain the enhanced urinary acidification, which is speculated to prevent stone formation because of hypercalciuria and (3) the decreased expression of outer medullary AE2 suggests a compensatory reduction of the transepithelial bicarbonate transport.

Role of acidosis-induced increases in calcium on PTH secretion in acute metabolic and respiratory acidosis in the dog

Recently, we showed that both acute metabolic acidosis and respiratory acidosis stimulate parathyroid hormone (PTH) secretion in the dog. To evaluate the specific effect of acidosis, ionized calcium (iCa) was clamped at a normal value. Because iCa values normally increase during acute acidosis, we now have studied the PTH response to acute metabolic and respiratory acidosis in dogs in which the iCa concentration was allowed to increase (nonclamped) compared with dogs with a normal iCa concentration (clamped). Five groups of dogs were studied: control, metabolic (clamped and nonclamped), and respiratory (clamped and nonclamped) acidosis. Metabolic (HCl infusion) and respiratory (hypoventilation) acidosis was progressively induced during 60 min. In the two clamped groups, iCa was maintained at a normal value with an EDTA infusion. Both metabolic and respiratory acidosis increased (P < 0.05) iCa values in nonclamped groups. In metabolic acidosis, the increase in iCa was progressive and greater (P < 0.05) than in respiratory acidosis, in which iCa increased by 0.04 mM and then remained constant despite further pH reductions. The increase in PTH values was greater (P < 0.05) in clamped than in nonclamped groups (metabolic and respiratory acidosis). In the nonclamped metabolic acidosis group, PTH values first increased and then decreased from peak values when iCa increased by > 0.1 mM. In the nonclamped respiratory acidosis group, PTH values exceeded (P < 0.05) baseline values only after iCa values stopped increasing at a pH of 7.30. For the same increase in iCa in the nonclamped groups, PTH values increased more in metabolic acidosis. In conclusion, 1) both metabolic acidosis and respiratory acidosis stimulate PTH secretion; 2) the physiological increase in the iCa concentration during the induction of metabolic and respiratory acidosis reduces the magnitude of the PTH increase; 3) in metabolic acidosis, the increase in the iCa concentration can be of sufficient magnitude to reverse the increase in PTH values; and 4) for the same degree of acidosis-induced hypercalcemia, the increase in PTH values is greater in metabolic than in respiratory acidosis.

Effect of growth hormone on renal and systemic acid-base homeostasis in humans

The effects of recombinant human growth hormone (GH, 0.1 U.kg body wt-1.12 h-1) on systemic and renal acid-base homeostasis were investigated in six normal subjects with preexisting sustained chronic metabolic acidosis, induced by NH4Cl administration (4.2 mmol.kg body wt-1.day-1). GH administration increased and maintained plasma bicarbonate concentration from 14.1 +/- 1.4 to 18.6 +/- 1.1 mmol/l (P < 0.001). The GH-induced increase in plasma bicarbonate concentration was the consequence of a significant increase in net acid excretion that was accounted for largely by an increase in renal NH+4 excretion sufficient in magnitude to override a decrease in urinary titratable acid excretion. During GH administration, urinary pH increased and correlated directly and significantly with urinary NH4+ concentration. Urinary net acid excretion rates were not different during the steady-state periods of acidosis and acidosis with GH administration. Glucocorticoid and mineralocorticoid activities increased significantly in response to acidosis and were suppressed (glucocorticoid) or decreased to control levels (mineralocorticoid) by GH. The partial correction of metabolic acidosis occurred despite GH-induced renal sodium retention (180 mmol; gain in weight of 1.8 +/- 0.2 kg, P < 0.005) and decreased glucocorticoid and mineralocorticoid activities. Thus GH (and/or insulin-like growth factor I) increased plasma bicarbonate concentration and partially corrected metabolic acidosis. This effect was generated in large part by and maintained fully by a renal mechanism (i.e., increased renal NH3 production and NH+4/net acid excretion).

Chronic metabolic acidosis increases the serum concentration of 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D in humans by stimulating its production rate. Critical role of acidosis-induced renal hypophosphatemia

Chronic metabolic acidosis results in metabolic bone disease, calcium nephrolithiasis, and growth retardation. The pathogenesis of each of these sequelae is poorly understood in humans. We therefore investigated the effects of chronic extrarenal metabolic acidosis on the regulation of 1,25-(OH)2D, parathyroid hormone, calcium, and phosphate metabolism in normal humans. Chronic extrarenal metabolic acidosis was induced by administering two different doses of NH4Cl [2.1 (low dose) and 4.2 (high dose) mmol/kg body wt per d, respectively] to four male volunteers each during metabolic balance conditions. Plasma [HCO3-] decreased by 4.5 +/- 0.4 mmol/liter in the low dose and by 9.1 +/- 0.3 mmol/liter (P < 0.001) in the high dose group. Metabolic acidosis induced renal hypophosphatemia, which strongly correlated with the severity of acidosis (Plasma [PO4] on plasma [HCO3-]; r = 0.721, P < 0.001). Both metabolic clearance and production rates of 1,25-(OH)2D increased in both groups. In the high dose group, the percentage increase in production rate was much greater than the percentage increase in metabolic clearance rate, resulting in a significantly increased serum 1,25-(OH)2D concentration. A strong inverse correlation was observed for serum 1,25-(OH)2D concentration on both plasma [PO4] (r = -0.711, P < 0.001) and plasma [HCO3-] (r = -0.725, P < 0.001). Plasma ionized calcium concentration did not change in either group whereas intact serum parathyroid hormone concentration decreased significantly in the high dose group. In conclusion, metabolic acidosis results in graded increases in serum 1,25-(OH)2D concentration by stimulating its production rate in humans. The increased production rate is explained by acidosis-induced hypophosphatemia/cellular phosphate depletion resulting at least in part from decreased renal tubular phosphate reabsorption. The decreased serum intact parathyroid hormone levels in more severe acidosis may be the consequence of hypophosphatemia and/or increased serum 1,25-(OH)2D concentrations.

Acute metabolic acidosis enhances circulating parathyroid hormone, which contributes to the renal response against acidosis in the rat

Acute PTH administration enhances final urine acidification in the rat. HCl was infused during 3 h in rats to determine the parathyroid and renal responses to acute metabolic acidosis. Serum immunoreactive PTH (iPTH) concentration significantly increased and nephrogenous adenosine 3H,5H-cyclic monophosphate tended to increase during HCl loading in intact and adrenalectomized (ADX) rats despite significant increments in plasma ionized calcium. Strong linear relationships existed between serum iPTH concentration and arterial bicarbonate or proton concentration (P less than 0.0001). Serum iPth concentration and NcAMP remained stable in intact time-control rats and decreased in CaCl2-infused, nonacidotic animals. Urinary acidification was markedly reduced in parathyroidectomized (PTX) as compared with intact rats during both basal and acidosis states; human PTH-(1-34) infusion in PTX rats restored in a dose-dependent manner the ability of the kidney to acidify the urine and excrete net acid. Acidosis-induced increase in urinary net acid excretion was observed in intact, PTX, and ADX, but not in ADX-thyroparathyroidectomized rats. We conclude that (a) acute metabolic acidosis enhances circulating PTH activity, and (b) PTH markedly contributes to the renal response against acute metabolic acidosis by enhancing urinary acidification.

Bisphosphonates and extrarenal acid buffering capacity

Both the intracellular compartment and bone mineral are supposed to play a role in acid-base balance by contributing to the extrarenal acid buffering capacity. Bisphosphonates could affect extrarenal acid buffering capacity by interfering with the formation and/or dissolution of bone mineral. In the present study, rats were pretreated with either 1-hydroxyethylidene-1, 1-bisphosphonate (HEBP, 10 mg/kg.day sc), with prevailing inhibitory action on bone mineral formation, or dichloromethylene bisphosphonate (Cl2MBP, 10 mg p/kg.day sc) with prevailing action on bone resorption, or NaCl injections (controls) for 7 days. In intact rats, blood acid-base variables were influenced by neither HEBP, nor Cl2MBP. Two hours after nephrectomy and before acute acid loading, HEBP-but not Cl2MBP-pretreated rats displayed a significant increase in both blood HCO3- and PCO2. After HCl infusion (2.5 mEq/kg), the relative decrement in blood HCO3- (difference in blood HCO3- before and after acid loading) was transiently more important in the two bisphosphonate pretreated groups than in controls. After a 24 hour fasting period, nephrectomized animals pretreated with Cl2MBP displayed significantly lower blood HCO3- and pH values than controls or HEBP-pretreated rats. These results suggest that bisphosphonates influence extrarenal buffering capacity according to their prevailing inhibitory action on either bone mineral formation and/or dissolution. These compounds could interfere with the release rate of bone proton buffers. However, in the presence of normal renal function, this effect does not disturb the blood acid-base equilibrium.

Parathyroid hormone directly inhibits tubular reabsorption of bicarbonate in normocalcaemic rats with chronic hyperparathyroidism

The hypothesis that chronic metabolic acidosis encountered in some patients with primary hyperparathyroidism is due to inhibition of proximal HCO3 reabsorption has recently been challenged. Indeed, this action of parathyroid hormone (PTH) has only been observed in acute studies, whereas in animal models of chronic hyperparathyroidism a metabolic alkalosis has been induced, probably owing to the release of alkaline salts from bone tissue, and to the stimulation of tubular acid secretion by hypercalcaemia. Studies were, therefore, performed to determine the effect of PTH on the renal handling of HCO3 in an animal model in which changes in plasma calcium and phosphate, and nephrocalcinosis, all known to affect tubular acidification, did not occur. Thyroparathyroidectomized (TPTX) rats were infused with synthetic bovine hormone fragment bPTH 1-34 via Alzet minipumps at the rate of 0.7 U h-1 to simulate normal endogenous production of PTH (group I) and at the three-fold higher rate of 2.1 U h-1 (group II). In order to prevent changes in serum calcium and phosphate, and nephrocalcinosis, animals of group II were fed a Ca- and P-free diet prior to TPTX (compared with a regular diet for group I) and both groups were treated with dichloromethylene-diphosphonate (Cl2MDP, 10 mg kg-1 day-1) and a Ca-free diet during PTH infusion. During the course of PTH infusion both groups of animals had stable and normal levels of plasma calcium and phosphate.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Animal model of primary hyperparathyroidism

An experimental model of hyperparathyroidism was developed in the rat to simulate primary hyperparathyroidism in humans. In this model thyroparathyroidectomized (TPTX) or parathyroidectomized (PTX) animals were infused for 6 days with an amount of bovine synthetic parathyroid hormone (PTH)-(1-34) fragment to restore plasma calcium levels to normal (0.7 U X h-1) or with PTH at twofold (1.4 U X h-1) or threefold (2.1 U X h-1) this basal level. Animals infused with 2.1 U X h-1 of bovine PTH-(1-34) exhibited hypercalcemia, hypophosphatemia, a reduction in theoretical renal threshold for phosphate and an increase in 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D plasma levels that were approximately threefold the control value. In addition, these animals demonstrated nephrocalcinosis and changes of bone histology that were typical of the findings in patients with primary hyperparathyroidism. In contrast, in animals infused at 1.4 U X h-1, plasma calcium, phosphate, and theoretical renal threshold for phosphate remained within normal limits, but plasma 1,25-dihydroxyvitamin D was increased above control, suggesting that increased activity of 1 alpha-hydroxylase may be the most sensitive index of increased PTH levels. This animal model permits sustained elevation of PTH plasma levels at basal or pathologically elevated levels and should provide an effective means by which to evaluate the consequences of chronic hyperparathyroidism on epithelial function, bone, and other organ systems.

Acid-base homeostasis during chronic PTH excess in humans

The chronic renal and systemic acid-base effects of hyperparathyroidism in humans remain controversial and unresolved. The present studies evaluated the acid-base response of normal human subjects to a 13-day intravenous infusion of synthetic b(1-34) PTH sufficient to result in sustained hypercalcemia and hypophosphatemia. The acid-base response was biphasic: an initial transient renal acidosis developed on the first day of PTH infusion, followed by a prompt increase in net acid excretion and plasma [HCO3-] of sufficient magnitude to result in a steady state of mild metabolic alkalosis. The results indicate that: 1) sustained, continuous, experimentally produced hyperparathyroidism results in a steady state of mild metabolic alkalosis; 2) the alkalosis is both generated and maintained, at least in part, by renal mechanisms; and 3) reported renal acidosis in sustained clinical conditions of primary hyperparathyroidism is not attributable to either direct or indirect effects of PTH excess when present for a 2-week period, an interval sufficient to re-establish a new steady state of renal and systemic acid-base equilibrium.

Renal and systemic magnesium metabolism during chronic continuous PTH infusion in normal subjects

Renal and systemic magnesium metabolism has not been adequately characterized in states of prolonged PTH excess in humans. Whereas acute experimental PTH administration uniformly results in enhanced renal magnesium reabsorption in many species, including humans, numerous clinical reports have documented renal magnesium wasting in human primary hyperparathyroidism. The possibility has been raised, therefore, that secondary consequences of sustained hyperparathyroidism (eg, hypercalcemia, nephrocalcinosis) might override the direct renal effects of PTH. Accordingly, the present studies assessed the effects of chronic (12 days) continuous intravenous (IV) b-(1-34)-PTH infusion in four normal human subjects on plasma, urinary, and intestinal magnesium and calcium homeostasis under metabolic balance conditions. Chronic PTH infusion resulted in a steady-state of hypercalcemia, hypercalciuria, and persistent negative calcium balance, which returned to baseline values in a recovery period. In contrast to plasma calcium concentration, plasma magnesium concentration was not altered by PTH infusion. Significant hypermagnesuria was observed during the period of PTH administration (control, 8.21 +/- 0.43 mEq/24 hours; PTH days 7-12, 10.75 +/- 0.74 mEq/24 hours, P less than 0.05) resulting in an initial, but transient, negative magnesium balance. During days 7-12 of PTH administration, net intestinal magnesium absorption increased sufficiently to result in a return to control magnesium balance. These findings suggest that hypermagnesuria associated with clinical primary hyperparathyroidism results from either direct or indirect effects of PTH excess, per se, and does not require the long-term consequences or complications of the clinical disorder (eg, nephrocalcinosis, renal insufficiency, acidosis).

The acidosis of chronic renal failure

The acidosis of chronic renal failure is not due to bicarbonate wastage per se; rather, bicarbonate reabsorption per nephron is markedly enhanced. The ability to lower the urine pH is preserved. While overall ammonium production may be decreased in chronic renal failure, both ammonium production and excretion are markedly increased when expressed per remaining nephron. Titratable acid excretion in chronic renal failure is essentially maximal, owing to the effect of parathyroid hormone on phosphate excretion by the kidney. Thus, it appears that the acidosis of chronic renal failure is solely the consequence of the reduction in functional renal mass. Extrarenal buffering may contribute substantially to the maintenance of a near normal acid-base status in patients with marked reduction in glomerular filtration rate. That homeostasis is so well preserved until glomerular filtration rate falls to approximately 10 per cent of normal is remarkable; the price, however, may be considerable. Prolonged acidosis may magnify the tendency of renal failure to cause osteodystrophy. An obvious treatment for the acidosis of renal failure is exogenous alkali therapy. Most clinicians withhold alkali therapy until the bicarbonate concentration falls below 20 mEq per L. If the acidosis cannot be safely corrected with exogenous therapy, dialysis should be initiated.

Renal tubular acidosis

In the past decade major advances in our understanding of renal tubular hydrogen ion secretion and bicarbonate reabsorption have provided new insight into the pathophysiology of renal tubular acidosis. Thus "fragment to fragment clings" and the number of disorders categorized within the syndrome grows, until we have come to know and name four types, with many subtypes. We hope this new perspective provides a basis for the physician to recognize renal tubular acidosis in its several forms so that an informed decision may be arrived at in choosing the best therapy. The physician may also be prepared to reasonably project the prognosis for each patient. We also hope that our detailed examination of renal acidification will provide a reference for delineation of new clinical expressions of acid-base disorders and kidney malfunction certain to be described in the years ahead.