scholarly journals Countercurrent multiplication may not explain the axial osmolality gradient in the outer medulla of the rat kidney

2011 ◽  
Vol 301 (5) ◽  
pp. F1047-F1056 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anita T. Layton ◽  
Harold E. Layton
Keyword(s):  
Alternative Explanation ◽  
Rat Kidney ◽  
Vascular Bundles ◽  
Outer Medulla ◽  
Anatomic Structure ◽  
Physical Separation ◽  
Nacl Absorption ◽  
Vasa Recta ◽  
Osmotic Water ◽  
Collecting Ducts

It has become widely accepted that the osmolality gradient along the corticomedullary axis of the mammalian outer medulla is generated and sustained by a process of countercurrent multiplication: active NaCl absorption from thick ascending limbs is coupled with the counterflow configuration of the descending and ascending limbs of the loops of Henle to generate an axial osmolality gradient along the outer medulla. However, aspects of anatomic structure (e.g., the physical separation of the descending limbs of short loops of Henle from contiguous ascending limbs), recent physiologic experiments (e.g., those that suggest that the thin descending limbs of short loops of Henle have a low osmotic water permeability), and mathematical modeling studies (e.g., those that predict that water-permeable descending limbs of short loops are not required for the generation of an axial osmolality gradient) suggest that countercurrent multiplication may be an incomplete, or perhaps even erroneous, explanation. We propose an alternative explanation for the axial osmolality gradient: we regard the thick limbs as NaCl sources for the surrounding interstitium, and we hypothesize that the increasing axial osmolality gradient along the outer medulla is primarily sustained by an increasing ratio, as a function of increasing medullary depth, of NaCl absorption (from thick limbs) to water absorption (from thin descending limbs of long loops of Henle and, in antidiuresis, from collecting ducts). We further hypothesize that ascending vasa recta that are external to vascular bundles will carry, toward the cortex, an absorbate that at each medullary level is hyperosmotic relative to the adjacent interstitium.

A region-based mathematical model of the urine concentrating mechanism in the rat outer medulla. II. Parameter sensitivity and tubular inhomogeneity

2005 ◽  
Vol 289 (6) ◽  
pp. F1367-F1381 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anita T. Layton ◽  
Harold E. Layton
Keyword(s):  
Mathematical Model ◽  
Boundary Conditions ◽  
Rat Kidney ◽  
Vascular Bundles ◽  
Thick Ascending Limb ◽  
Outer Medulla ◽  
Model Calculations ◽  
Concentrating Mechanism ◽  
Vasa Recta ◽  
Urine Concentrating Mechanism

In a companion study (Layton AT and Layton HE. Am J Physiol Renal Physiol 289: F1346–F1366, 2005), a region-based mathematical model was formulated for the urine concentrating mechanism (UCM) in the outer medulla (OM) of the rat kidney. In the present study, we quantified the sensitivity of that model to several structural assumptions, including the degree of regionalization and the degree of inclusion of short descending limbs (SDLs) in the vascular bundles of the inner stripe (IS). Also, we quantified model sensitivity to several parameters that have not been well characterized in the experimental literature, including boundary conditions, short vasa recta distribution, and ascending vasa recta (AVR) solute permeabilities. These studies indicate that regionalization elevates the osmolality of the fluid delivered into the inner medulla via the collecting ducts; that model predictions are not significantly sensitive to boundary conditions; and that short vasa recta distribution and AVR permeabilities significantly impact concentrating capability. Moreover, we investigated, in the context of the UCM, the functional significance of several aspects of tubular segmentation and heterogeneity: SDL segments in the IS that are likely to be impermeable to water but highly permeable to urea; a prebend segment of SDLs that may be functionally like thick ascending limb (TAL); differing IS and outer stripe Na+ active transport rates in TAL; and potential active urea secretion into the proximal straight tubules. Model calculations predict that these aspects of tubular of segmentation and heterogeneity generally enhance solute cycling or promote effective UCM function.

Localization of angiotensin II type 1 receptor subtype mRNA in rat kidney

1995 ◽  
Vol 268 (2) ◽  
pp. F220-F226 ◽  
Author(s):  
D. P. Healy ◽  
M. Q. Ye ◽  
M. Troyanovskaya
Keyword(s):  
In Situ Hybridization ◽  
Rat Kidney ◽  
At1 Receptor ◽  
Receptor Subtypes ◽  
Mrna Levels ◽  
Ang Ii ◽  
Outer Medulla ◽  
Vasa Recta

The physiological effects of angiotensin II (ANG II) on the kidney are mediated primarily by the ANG II type 1 (AT1) receptor. Two highly similar AT1 receptor subtypes have been identified in the rat by molecular cloning techniques, namely AT1A and AT1B. The intrarenal localization of the AT1A and AT1B receptor subtypes has not been studied by hybridization methods with subtype-specific receptor probes. Using radiolabeled probes from the 3' noncoding region of the AT1A and AT1B cDNAs, we localized AT1 mRNA in rat kidney by in situ hybridization. Specificity of the 3' noncoding region probes was tested by Northern blot and solution hybridization methods. AT1A mRNA levels were highest in the liver, kidney, and adrenal. In contrast, AT1B mRNA levels were highest in the adrenal and pituitary and low in kidney. Autoradiographic localization of 125I-[Sar1,Ile8]ANG II binding indicated that the highest levels of AT1 receptors were found in glomeruli and vascular elements. In situ hybridization with a nonselective AT1 receptor riboprobe indicated that the highest levels of AT1 mRNA were in the outer medullary vasa recta and cortical glomeruli with additional diffuse labeling of the cortex and outer medulla, consistent with labeling of tubular elements. In contrast, in situ hybridization with the AT1 subtype selective probes revealed that AT1A receptor mRNA was primarily localized to the vasa recta and diffusely to the outer stripe of the outer medulla and the renal cortex.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)

Outer medullary anatomy and the urine concentrating mechanism

1998 ◽  
Vol 274 (2) ◽  
pp. F413-F424 ◽  
Author(s):  
X. Wang ◽  
S. R. Thomas ◽  
A. S. Wexler
Keyword(s):  
Structural Model ◽  
Comparative Anatomy ◽  
Urine Concentration ◽  
Vascular Bundles ◽  
Vasa Recta ◽  
Collecting Ducts ◽  
Outer Stripe ◽  
Physiological Values ◽  
Modeling Representation ◽  
Urine Concentrating Mechanism

In earlier work, mathematical models of the urine concentration mechanism were developed incorporating the features of renal anatomy. However, several anatomic observations showed inconsistencies in the modeling representation of the outer stripe (OS) anatomy. In this study, based on observations from comparative anatomy and morphometric studies, we propose a new structural model of outer medullary anatomy, different from that previously presented [A. S. Wexler, R. E. Kalaba, and D. J. Marsh. Am. J. Physiol. 260 ( Renal Fluid Electrolyte Physiol. 29): F368–F383, 1991]. The modifications include the following features of rat outer medullary anatomy, for example, 1) in the OS, the limbs of long loops of Henle surround the descending and ascending vasa recta that develop into the vascular bundles in the inner stripe (IS), whereas the limbs of short loops are close to the collecting ducts; and 2) the descending limbs of short loops shift from the tubular region in the OS to near the vascular bundle in the IS, whereas the limbs of long loops are situated away from the vascular bundles in the tubular region. The sensitivity of the concentrating process to the relative position of loops and vessels was investigated in the different medullary regions. With these modifications, the model predicts a more physiological, axial osmolarity gradient in both outer and inner medulla with membrane parameters that are all in the range of measured physiological values, including the urea permeabilities of descending vasa recta reported by Pallone and co-workers (T. L. Pallone, J. Work, R. L. Myers, and R. L. Jamison. J. Clin.Invest. 93: 212–222, 1994).

scholarly journals Effects of pH and medullary blood flow on oxygen transport and sodium reabsorption in the rat outer medulla

2010 ◽  
Vol 298 (6) ◽  
pp. F1369-F1383 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jing Chen ◽  
Aurélie Edwards ◽  
Anita T. Layton
Keyword(s):  
Blood Flow ◽  
Rat Kidney ◽  
Sodium Reabsorption ◽  
Vascular Bundles ◽  
Outer Medulla ◽  
Medullary Blood Flow ◽  
Blood Ph ◽  
Effects Of Ph ◽  
Tubular Flow

We used a mathematical model of O2 transport and the urine concentrating mechanism of the outer medulla of the rat kidney to study the effects of blood pH and medullary blood flow on O2 availability and Na+ reabsorption. The model predicts that in vivo paracellular Na+ fluxes across medullary thick ascending limbs (mTALs) are small relative to transcellular Na+ fluxes and that paracellular fluxes favor Na+ reabsorption from the lumen along most of the mTAL segments. In addition, model results suggest that blood pH has a significant impact on O2 transport and Na+ reabsorption owing to the Bohr effect, according to which a lower pH reduces the binding affinity of hemoglobin for O2. Thus our model predicts that the presumed greater acidity of blood in the interbundle regions, where mTALs are located, relative to that in the vascular bundles, facilitates the delivery of O2 to support the high metabolic requirements of the mTALs and raises the concentrating capability of the outer medulla. Model results also suggest that increases in vascular and tubular flow rates result in disproportional, smaller increases in active O2 consumption and mTAL active Na+ transport, despite the higher delivery of O2 and Na+. That is, at a sufficiently high medullary O2 supply, O2 demand in the outer medulla does not adjust precisely to changes in O2 delivery.

Aquaporin-1 water channels in short and long loop descending thin limbs and in descending vasa recta in rat kidney

1995 ◽  
Vol 268 (6) ◽  
pp. F1023-F1037 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Nielsen ◽  
T. Pallone ◽  
B. L. Smith ◽  
E. I. Christensen ◽  
P. Agre ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Water Permeability ◽  
Rat Kidney ◽  
Water Channels ◽  
Vascular Bundles ◽  
Permeability Characteristics ◽  
Aquaporin 1 ◽  
Basolateral Membranes ◽  
Vasa Recta ◽  
Peritubular Capillaries ◽  
Thin Limb

The localization of aquaporin-1 water channels (AQP-1) in nephron and vascular structures in rat kidney were characterized, because vascular bundles are known to play a key role in urinary concentration. Immunohistochemistry and immunoelectron microscopy were applied on thin cryosections or ultrathin Lowicryl sections, using an optimized freeze-substitution method. Within the vascular bundles, AQP-1 is localized in descending thin limbs (DTL) of short nephrons in apical and basolateral membranes. The expression in DTL of short nephrons is considerably lower compared with the expression in long nephrons, consistent with the known lower osmotic water permeability of this segment. Furthermore, DTL of short nephrons expressing AQP-1 continue abruptly into a thin limb segment without AQP-1. This suggests the existence of a novel thin limb epithelium in the outer medulla. Extensive expression of AQP-1 is observed in apical and basolateral membranes of DTL of long nephrons, which are localized in the periphery of the vascular bundles. The expression decreases along the axis of long nephron DTLs in correlation with the known water permeability characteristics of thin limb segments. DTLs of both short and long nephrons continue abruptly into thin limb segments without AQP-1 expression, revealing an abrupt cell-to-cell transition. In vasa recta, AQP-1 is selectively localized in the nonfenestrated endothelium of descending vasa recta, whereas the fenestrated endothelium of ascending vesa recta and peritubular capillaries do not express AQP-1. AQP-1 is localized in both apical and basolateral plasma membranes, which is logical for transendothelial water transport. Isolated perfused descending vasa recta display high water permeability, and, unlike sodium permeability, diffusional water permeability is partly inhibited by mercurials, thus substantiating the presence of mercurial-sensitive water channels in descending vasa recta. Thus AQP-1 is localized in DTL and descending vasa recta within vascular bundles, and AQP-1 expression in DTL segments is in exact concordance with the known water permeability characteristics, strongly supporting that AQP-1 is the major constitutive water channel of the nephron.

Expression of urea transporters in the developing rat kidney

2002 ◽  
Vol 282 (3) ◽  
pp. F530-F540 ◽  
Author(s):  
Young-Hee Kim ◽  
Dong-Un Kim ◽  
Ki-Hwan Han ◽  
Ju-Young Jung ◽  
Jeff M. Sands ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Collecting Duct ◽  
Rat Kidney ◽  
Outer Part ◽  
Vascular Bundles ◽  
Electron Microscopic ◽  
Outer Medulla ◽  
Intense Staining ◽  
Short Loop ◽  
Adult Kidney ◽  
Developing Rat

Urea transport in the kidney is mediated by a family of transporter proteins that includes renal urea transporters (UT-A) and erythrocyte urea transporters (UT-B). Because newborn rats are not capable of producing concentrated urine, we examined the time of expression and the distribution of UT-A and UT-B in the developing rat kidney by light and electron microscopic immunocytochemistry. Kidneys from 16-, 18-, and 20-day-old fetuses, 1-, 4-, 7-, 14-, and 21-day-old pups, and adult animals were studied. In the adult kidney, UT-A was expressed intensely in the inner medullary collecting duct (IMCD) and terminal portion of the short-loop descending thin limb (DTL) and weakly in long-loop DTL in the outer part of the inner medulla. UT-A immunoreactivity was not present in the fetal kidney but was observed in the IMCD and DTL in 1-day-old pups. The intensity of UT-A immunostaining in the IMCD gradually increased during postnatal development. In 4- and 7-day-old pups, UT-A immunoreactivity was present in the DTL at the border between the outer and inner medulla. In 14- and 21-day-old pups, strong UT-A immunostaining was observed in the terminal part of short-loop DTL in the outer medulla, and weak labeling remained in long-loop DTL descending into the outer part of the inner medulla. In the adult kidney, there was intense staining for UT-B in descending vasa recta (DVR) and weak labeling of glomeruli. In the developing kidney, UT-B was first observed in the DVR of a 20-day-old fetus. After birth there was a striking increase in the number of UT-B-positive DVR, in association with the formation of vascular bundles. The intensity of immunostaining remained strong in the outer medulla but gradually decreased in the inner medulla. We conclude that the expression of urea transporters in short-loop DTL and DVR coincides with the development of the ability to produce a concentrated urine.

scholarly journals Impact of nitric oxide-mediated vasodilation on outer medullary NaCl transport and oxygenation

2012 ◽  
Vol 303 (7) ◽  
pp. F907-F917 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aurélie Edwards ◽  
Anita T. Layton
Keyword(s):  
Nitric Oxide ◽  
Blood Flow ◽  
Supply And Demand ◽  
Vascular Bundles ◽  
Concentration Gradients ◽  
Outer Medulla ◽  
Nacl Transport ◽  
Reciprocal Interactions ◽  
Medullary Blood Flow ◽  
Vasa Recta

The present study aimed to elucidate the reciprocal interactions between oxygen (O2), nitric oxide (NO), and superoxide (O2−) and their effects on vascular and tubular function in the outer medulla. We expanded our region-based model of transport in the rat outer medulla (Edwards A, Layton AT. Am J Physiol Renal Physiol 301: F979–F996, 2011) to incorporate the effects of NO on descending vasa recta (DVR) diameter and blood flow. Our model predicts that the segregation of long DVR in the center of vascular bundles, away from tubular segments, gives rise to large radial NO concentration gradients that in turn result in differential regulation of vasoactivity in short and long DVR. The relative isolation of long DVR shields them from changes in the rate of NaCl reabsorption, and hence from changes in O2 requirements, by medullary thick ascending limbs (mTALs), thereby preserving O2 delivery to the inner medulla. The model also predicts that O2− can sufficiently decrease the bioavailability of NO in the interbundle region to affect the diameter of short DVR, suggesting that the experimentally observed effects of O2− on medullary blood flow may be at least partly mediated by NO. In addition, our results indicate that the tubulovascular cross talk of NO, that is, the diffusion of NO produced by mTAL epithelia toward adjacent DVR, helps to maintain blood flow and O2 supply to the interbundle region even under basal conditions. NO also acts to preserve local O2 availability by inhibiting the rate of active Na+ transport, thereby reducing the O2 requirements of mTALs. The dual regulation by NO of oxygen supply and demand is predicted to significantly attenuate the hypoxic effects of angiotensin II.

scholarly journals Impact of renal medullary three-dimensional architecture on oxygen transport

2014 ◽  
Vol 307 (3) ◽  
pp. F263-F272 ◽  
Author(s):  
Brendan C. Fry ◽  
Aurélie Edwards ◽  
Ioannis Sgouralis ◽  
Anita T. Layton
Keyword(s):  
Oxygen Delivery ◽  
Interstitial Fluid ◽  
Collecting Duct ◽  
Rat Kidney ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Fluid Composition ◽  
Vascular Bundles ◽  
Thick Ascending Limb ◽  
Outer Medulla ◽  
The Impact

We have developed a highly detailed mathematical model of solute transport in the renal medulla of the rat kidney to study the impact of the structured organization of nephrons and vessels revealed in anatomic studies. The model represents the arrangement of tubules around a vascular bundle in the outer medulla and around a collecting duct cluster in the upper inner medulla. Model simulations yield marked gradients in intrabundle and interbundle interstitial fluid oxygen tension (Po2), NaCl concentration, and osmolality in the outer medulla, owing to the vigorous active reabsorption of NaCl by the thick ascending limbs. In the inner medulla, where the thin ascending limbs do not mediate significant active NaCl transport, interstitial fluid composition becomes much more homogeneous with respect to NaCl, urea, and osmolality. Nonetheless, a substantial Po2 gradient remains, owing to the relatively high oxygen demand of the inner medullary collecting ducts. Perhaps more importantly, the model predicts that in the absence of the three-dimensional medullary architecture, oxygen delivery to the inner medulla would drastically decrease, with the terminal inner medulla nearly completely deprived of oxygen. Thus model results suggest that the functional role of the three-dimensional medullary architecture may be to preserve oxygen delivery to the papilla. Additionally, a simulation that represents low medullary blood flow suggests that the separation of thick limbs from the vascular bundles substantially increases the risk of the segments to hypoxic injury. When nephrons and vessels are more homogeneously distributed, luminal Po2 in the thick ascending limb of superficial nephrons increases by 66% in the inner stripe. Furthermore, simulations predict that owing to the Bohr effect, the presumed greater acidity of blood in the interbundle regions, where thick ascending limbs are located, relative to that in the vascular bundles, facilitates the delivery of O2 to support the high metabolic requirements of the thick limbs and raises NaCl reabsorption.

scholarly journals Immunohistochemical Localization of Arginine and Citrulline in Rat Renal Tissue

1997 ◽  
Vol 45 (6) ◽  
pp. 875-881 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eiko Aoki ◽  
Ikuo K. Takeuchi
Keyword(s):  
Amino Acids ◽  
Epithelial Cells ◽  
Rat Kidney ◽  
Immunohistochemical Method ◽  
Moderate Intensity ◽  
Outer Medulla ◽  
Collecting Ducts ◽  
Outer Stripe ◽  
Convoluted Tubules ◽  
Proximal Convoluted Tubules

Using antibodies highly specific for L-arginine and L-citrulline, we localized these amino acids in rat kidney with immunohistochemical methods. Highest levels of arginine immunoreactivity were observed in epithelial cells of proximal tubules in the outer stripe of the outer medulla and the collecting ducts in the cortex. Staining intensity of proximal convoluted tubules in the outer stripe decreased from the inner side to the outer side. In the inner medulla, collecting ducts were labeled with moderate intensity. Staining within the cortex was apparent only with collecting ducts. Citrulline immunoreactivity was localized in the epithelial cells of collecting ducts both in the cortex and medulla. Immunoreactivity was also found in glomerular podocytes and in the epithelial cells of proximal convoluted tubules in the outer medulla. These localizations were different from those of other amino acids previously reported. The precise cellular distribution of arginine and citrulline in rat kidney was determined for the first time by an immunohistochemical method in the present study.

scholarly journals Nitric oxide and superoxide transport in a cross section of the rat outer medulla. I. Effects of low medullary oxygen tension

2010 ◽  
Vol 299 (3) ◽  
pp. F616-F633 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aurélie Edwards ◽  
Anita T. Layton
Keyword(s):  
Nitric Oxide ◽  
Cross Section ◽  
Vascular Bundle ◽  
Fluid Model ◽  
Vascular Bundles ◽  
Concentration Gradients ◽  
Outer Medulla ◽  
Vasa Recta ◽  
The Difference ◽  
The Impact

To examine the impact of the complex radial organization of the rat outer medulla (OM) on the distribution of nitric oxide (NO), superoxide (O2−) and total peroxynitrite (ONOO), we developed a mathematical model that simulates the transport of those species in a cross section of the rat OM. To simulate the preferential interactions among tubules and vessels that arise from their relative radial positions in the OM, we adopted the region-based approach developed by Layton and Layton ( Am J Physiol Renal Physiol 289: F1346–F1366, 2005). In that approach, the structural organization of the OM is represented by means of four concentric regions centered on a vascular bundle. The model predicts the concentrations of NO, O2−, and ONOO in the tubular and vascular lumen, epithelial and endothelial cells, red blood cells (RBCs), and interstitial fluid. Model results suggest that the large gradients in Po2 from the core of the vascular bundle toward its periphery, which stem from the segregation of O2-supplying descending vasa recta (DVR) within the vascular bundles, in turn generate steep radial NO and O2− concentration gradients, since the synthesis of both solutes is O2 dependent. Without the rate-limiting effects of O2, NO concentration would be lowest in the vascular bundle core, that is, the region with the highest density of RBCs, which act as a sink for NO. Our results also suggest that, under basal conditions, the difference in NO concentrations between DVR that reach into the inner medulla and those that turn within the OM should lead to differences in vasodilation and preferentially increase blood flow to the inner medulla.

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