Introduction. Focal segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS) ranks among nephrotic syndromes. Research shows that FSGS is brought about by several genes including transient receptor potential cation channel subfamily c member 6 (TRPC6). This study aimed to investigate TRPC6 gene in Iranian FSGS children. Materials and Methods. Twenty-six FSGS patients were included. They were all under 16 years old. Polymerase chain reaction amplification and sequencing were performed to examine exons 2 and 13 of TRPC6 gene. Results. Sampling was performed when the patients had a mean age of 9. 26 ± 3. 19 years. Sixteen children were boys (61. 5%); malefemale ratio was 1. 35: 1. Four patients (15. 4%) were diagnosed with TRPC6 variants. Three missense nonsynonymous mutations (C121S, D130V, and G162R) and 1 synonymous mutation (I111I) were detected. All variants were novel; in silico analysis predicted D130V and G162R as pathogenic. Patients with and without mutations were not different significantly regarding age at disease onset, sex, consanguinity, hypertension, hematuria, serum creatinine and albumin, rate of progression to kidney failure, response to steroids, and resistance to cyclosporine A and cyclophosphamide. Conclusions. This study examined exons 2 and 13 of TRPC6 gene in Iranian FSGS children. Four novel TRPC6 variants were detected; in silico analysis showed that 2 variants (D130V and G162R) could be pathogenic. It could be concluded that TRPC6 may be useful for genetic screening in Iranian FSGS children.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of moderate-intensity training on the calcineurin/ nuclear factor of activated t-cells (NFAT) pathway and factors affecting it in the middle-age Wistar rats. Materials and Methods: In this experimental study, 40 young (n=10, 4-month-old) and middle-aged (n=30, 13-15 months old) Wistar rats were included in this experimental study. All young and 10 middle-aged rats did not training and served as a control comparision; while the remaining 20 middle-aged rats were trained at moderate intensity for 4-weeks (n=10) or 8-weeks (n=10) on a treadmill (speed: 16 m/minutes, slope: 0%, distance: 830 m, duration: 54 minutes). Results: Calcineurin tissue expression was increased in the middle-aged control rats compared to the young control rats (P=0. 001). Expression of sarco/endoplasmic reticulum Ca2+-ATPase (SERC2A), natriuretic peptide receptor-A (NPR-A), phospholamban (PLB), plasma membrane Ca2+ ATPase (PMCA4b), and p-AKT was significantly decreased in the heart tissue of middle-aged control compared to the young control rats (P=0. 001). Furthermore, transforming growth factor beta (TGF-β ), including transient receptor potential canonical 6 (TRPC6), were up-regulated in the heart tissue of middle-aged control compared to the young control rats (P=0. 001). However, aerobic training inhibited this pathway and reversed all changes in the trained middle-aged rats. Conclusion: Aerobic training effectively inhibited the calcineurin/NFATc pathway and modulated intracellular Ca2+ levels at least partially by restoring NPR-A, SERCA2, p-PLB, and p-AKT, and decreasing TRPC6 and TGF-β levels.