Renal mRNA sequencing of SLE mouse model treated with Qihuang Jianpi Zishen decoction

Qihuang Jianpi Zishen decoction (JPZS), a spleen- and kidney-tonifying prescription used in traditional Chinese medicine, has shown renal protective effects, but its metabolism-centred modes of action remain unclear. Here, we combined an MRL/lpr lupus-prone mouse model with multi-omics profiling to delineate how JPZS modulates the gut–kidney axis.

Female MRL/lpr mice were randomised to JPZS or vehicle, with C57BL/6 mice as healthy controls. Renal outcomes, serological autoimmunity and immune-inflammatory indices were assessed alongside 16S rRNA sequencing of faecal microbiota, untargeted serum metabolomics and renal transcriptomics, followed by integrative network analyses and targeted validation of glycolytic pathways. JPZS markedly alleviated proteinuria, serum creatinine elevation, glomerular IgG deposition and histopathological damage, and partially normalised circulating cytokines in MRL/lpr mice.