Figure 2.

Free cholesterol (left), cholesterol esters (middle), and HMG CoA reductase (HMGCR) protein levels (right, by Western blot) were assessed 3 days after unilateral I/R and in contralateral (CL) control kidneys. An ∼35% increase in free cholesterol levels was observed. This was accompanied by a sixfold increase in cholesterol esters, a cholesterol storage form. Increases in HMGCR protein were also observed, the magnitude of which paralleled the extent of the free cholesterol accumulation (each ∼35%).