The Transmission Electron Microscopic Study on the Alteration of Filtration Barrier in Aged Rat Kidney

The filtration barrier of kidney consists of endothelial cell, glomerular capillary, glomerular basement membrane, mesangial matrix, and podocyte. In aged rats, the morphological changes were shown in various parts, including the glomerulus. These changes were thickening of basement membrane and mesangial matrix, crescent formation of glomerular capillary, deformity of foot processes, glomerular sclerosis and obsolescence. But these glomerular morphologies are partial images or few serial images analysis. In this study, we examined the morphological alteration of glomerulus in the young and aged rats by light microscopy, transmission electron microscopy and three dimensional reconstruction. We were found in aged rat glomerulus, expansion of urinary space and mesangial matrix, thickening and degrading of glomerular basement membrane, decreasing in podocyte foot processes, fragmentation of podocytic nucleus membrane. These observations indicate that may provide useful data for investigating the pathogenesis of age-related dysfunction of kidney.