Obesity and dyslipidemia can be associated with cellular senescence, and may impair
kidney function. However, whether senescence contributes to renal dysfunction in these
conditions remains unclear. Quercetin is an abundant dietary flavonoid that selectively
clears senescent cells by inhibiting PI3K/AKT and p 53/ p 21/serpines and inducing
apoptosis. We hypothesized that high-fat-diet-induced obesity causes renal senescence,
which would be mitigated by quercetin. C57BL/6J mice fed either standard chow or high-fat
diets were treated with quercetin (50mg/kg) or vehicle 5-days biweekly via oral
gavage for 10-weeks. Subsequently, renal function was studied in vivo using magnetic
resonance imaging, and renal senescence and histology were evaluated ex vivo . Mice
fed with a high-fat diet developed obesity and hypercholesterolemia, whereas renal
size remained unchanged. Murine obesity impaired renal function and cortical oxygenation,
and induced glomerulomegaly. Renal markers of senescence ( e.g ., expression of p16,
p19 , and p53 ) and its secretory phenotype were upregulated in the obese hypercholesterolemic
compared to lean mice in renal tubular cells, but attenuated in quercetin-treated
murine kidneys, as was renal fibrosis. Quercetin treatment also increased renal cortical
oxygenation and decreased plasma creatinine levels in obese mice, whereas body weight
and cholesterol levels were unaltered. Therefore, murine obesity and dyslipidemia
induce renal tissue senescence and impairs kidney function, which is alleviated by
chronic senolytic treatment. These findings implicate senescence in loss of kidney
function in murine dyslipidemia and obesity, and support further studies of senolytic
therapy in obesity.