. Pediatr Nephrol. 2004 Apr;19(4):396-9. Epub 2004 Feb 21. 5-Lipoxygenase and leukotriene A4 hydrolase expression in primary nephrotic syndrome. Bakr A, Hawas S, Slem S, Moniem AA, Ghatab T, Tawfik M. Abstract Gene expression of 5-lipoxygenase (5-LO) and leukotriene A (4) (LTA(4) hydrolase was analyzed in the peripheral blood of 48 children with active primary nephrotic syndrome (PNS) (group I), 27 children with PNS in remission (group II), and 20 controls. Group I included 34 patients with steroid-sensitive PNS (SSNS) and 14 patients with steroid-resistant PNS (SRNS). Total RNA purified from peripheral blood mononuclear (PBMN) cells was reverse transcribed into cDNA and amplified with specific primers in the polymerase chain reaction. All group I patients and none of the controls expressed 5-LO and LTA(4) hydrolase. Of group II children, 22.2% expressed 5-LO, while 51.9% expressed LTA (4) hydrolase. Among group I patients there was a significant positive correlation between the degree of proteinuria and the expression of 5-LO ( r=0.27, P=0.03) and LTA(4) hydrolase ( r=0.44, P=0.001). There was no difference in the degree of expression of both enzymes between SSNS and SRNS patients. In conclusion, leukotrienes may play a role in the pathogenesis of PNS in children, but they do not participate in the response of these patients to steroids. PMID: 14986086 [PubMed - indexed for MEDLINE]