Evaluation of the Effects of High Uric Acid on Glucolipid Metabolism, Renal Injury and the Gut Microbiota in Diabetic Male Hamsters with Dyslipidemia

The prevalence of hyperuricemia with elevated serum uric acid is increasing worldwide. However, the effects of high uric acid on diabetic patients with dyslipidemia and the mechanisms underlying these effects remain unexplored. This study aimed to develop a novel diabetic model of hyperuricemia and dyslipidemia in male hamsters to evaluate the effects of high uric acid on glucolipid metabolism, renal injury and the gut microbiota. Twelve healthy hamsters were randomly divided into two groups and fed with a normal diet and high-fat/cholesterol diet (HFCD), respectively. Twenty-four diabetic hamsters were randomly divided into four groups receiving a normal diet; HFCD; potassium oxonate (PO) treatment (intragastric PO at doses of 350 mg/kg and adenine at doses of 150 mg/kg with 5% fructose water); and PO treatment with HFCD, respectively. After 4 weeks, all animals were dissected for determining serum biochemical indicators, tissue antioxidant parameters, renal pathological changes, target gene expressions, fecal short-chain fatty acids content, and the gut microbiota composition. The results showed that a hamster model with hyperuricemia and dyslipidemia was successively established by the combination of PO treatment and HFCD, in which serum uric acid, glucose, triglyceride and total cholesterol levels reached 499.5 ± 61.96 μmol/L, 16.88 ± 2.81 mmol/L, 119.88 ± 27.14 mmol/L and 72.92 ± 16.62 mmol/L, respectively. PO treatment and HFCD had synergistic effects on increasing uric acid, urea nitrogen, creatinine levels, liver xanthine oxidase activity, plasminogen activator inhibitor-1 and transforming growth factor-β expressions, and the relative abundance of Lleibacterium (p < 0.05); in addition, they caused glomerular mesangial cells and matrix proliferation, protein casts and urate deposition. High uric acid was closely related to decreased antioxidant capacity; decreased renal vascular endothelial growth factor expression; increased acetic acid content; decreased butyric, propanoic, and isobutyric acid levels; decreased Firmicutes to Bacteroidetes ratios (p < 0.05); and altered epithelial integrity and structure of the gut microbiota in diabetic hamsters. The findings indicate that high uric acid affects the glucolipid metabolism, accelerates renal damage, and disrupts the balance of intestinal flora in diabetic animals, which provides a scientific basis for metabolic syndrome prevention and control in diabetes.