An immunohistochemical study of aspartate, glutamate, and taurine in rat kidney.

Biochemical studies have revealed considerable amounts of free amino acids in the kidney. We examined the intrarenal distribution of three amino acids (aspartate, glutamate, and taurine) in the rat kidney with an immunoperoxidase method. In the renal cortex, all three amino acids were concentrated in the renal corpuscles and in the epithelia of the collecting tubules. Immunostaining of the collecting tubules was more intense in the principal cells than in the intercalated cells. The distal convoluted tubules were also immunostained with aspartate- and glutamate- specific antibodies but not with the taurine-specific antibody. In the renal medulla, the immunoreactivity specific for aspartate and for glutamate was similar; it was weak in the thick portion of the loop of Henle and strong in the collecting tubules. Immunoreactivity specific for taurine was restricted to regions within the epithelia of the thin portion of the loop of Henle and the collecting tubules. The significance of the accumulated amino acids as osmoregulatory agents is discussed.

The ultrastructure of the major species of an enriched methanogenic culture utilizing acetic acid

The ultrastructure of the cells of the major component of an enriched culture of a presumed methanogen which utilized acetic acid was studied by transmission and scanning election microscopy. The filaments were composed of Gram-positive, rod-shaped cells, 1–2 μm in length and about 0.5 μm in breadth, attached end to end. Septa between cells were complex, with a central, electron-dense sheet which had a spherical enlargement in the center separating the cell walls. The cells walls themselves were of variable thickness with a light, fluffy, thin portion on the outside and a denser, thicker portion within. They contain a series of rings stacked side by side which are composed of material that stains strongly and positively with phosphotungstate ion. The cytoplasmic membrane of these cells had an outer leaflet which stains more densely with uranium and lead ions than the inner leaflet. There were no recognizable organelles in the cytoplasm other than ribosomes. It is shown in these observations that the presumed methanogen may likely be a new species.