Prorenin

Prorenin is a precursor of renin, which can be detected in the blood and is 5-10 times thicker than renin. Conventional wisdom holds that the prorenin in blood is not biologically active. In addition to kidneys, the adrenal gland, testicles, and ovaries also produce prorenin. In addition to the blood can be examined before the renin, amniotic fluid, placenta, and so on can also be detected. In the mid-1980s, it was found that prerenin in the blood did not completely disappear after double nephrectomy, suggesting that other sources besides kidneys might be possible. At the same time, in diabetic patients, the blood renin level is very high, but not necessarily high. In the eye fluid of patients with retinopathy, the level of prerenin can be more than 100 times higher than that of normal people. In addition to diabetes, women who are pregnant also have high levels of prorenin in their blood. Subsequently, it is observed that some complications of diabetes, such as the amount of proteinuria and the severity of retinopathy, are related to the prerenin level, but not to the renin level. In view of these findings, it has been suspected that prorenin can have an independent effect and that, in addition to the synthesis of renin by special tissues, prerenin may also be synthesized and secreted in other tissues, and the latter may play a special pathologic role through special mechanisms.