Ab108789

The levels of serum creatinine (Scr), blood urea nitrogen (BUN), aspartate aminotransferase (AST), and alanine aminotransferase (ALT) were measured using serum detection kits (C011-2, C013-1-1, C0010-2-1, and C009-2-1; Nanjing Jiancheng Bioengineering Institute, Nanjing, China) in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions. The 24-h urine albumin quantitative measurement was performed with a rat albumin enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay kit (ab108789, Abcam).

Cell culture supernatants of AR42J-B13 cells grown for five days (see section ‘Differentiation Assays’) were collected and investigated for the presence of secreted albumin using a commercially available rat albumin ELISA kit (ab108789, Abcam), according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Results were normalised to cell numbers.

Blood plasma was collected via the abdominal aorta and then centrifuged at 3,500 rpm for 15 min (4°C). The blood samples were stored at −80°C until use. Twenty-four-hour urine samples were collected from the rats that were situated in a metabolic cage on the 14th and 28th weeks. Urinary creatinine levels were measured using an enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA) kit (C011-2-1, Nanjing Jiancheng Bioengineering Institute, Nanjing, China); urinary albumin levels were measured using an ELISA kit (ab108789, Abcam, Cambridge, MA, United States); and levels of urinary β2-MG were measured using an ELISA kit (RKM100, R&D Systems, Minneapolis, MN, United States). The urinary kidney injury molecule-1 (KIM-1) concentration was measured using an ELISA kit (ab119597). All protocols were performed following the manufacturers’ instructions.

Liver function parameters were measured in order to evaluate the hepatoprotective effect of Mel-PLGA NPs. The levels of aspartate aminotransferase (AST), alanine transaminase (ALT), albumin (ab234579, ab263883, ab108789, abcam, USA) and total bilirubin (MBS9389057, MyBiosource, USA) were measured by rat ELISA kits according to Farid et al.²⁷ .