Analysis of the three dimensional structure of the kidney glomerulus capillary network

The capillary network of the kidney glomerulus filters small molecules from the blood. The glomerular 3D structure should help to understand its function, but it is poorly characterized. We therefore devised a new approach in which an automated tape collecting microtome (ATUM) was used to collect 0.5 μm thick serial sections from fixed mouse kidneys. The sections were imaged by scanning electron microscopy at ~ 50 nm/pixel resolution. With this approach, 12 glomeruli were reconstructed at an x–y–z resolution ~ 10 × higher than that of paraffin sections. We found a previously undescribed no-cross zone between afferent and efferent branches on the vascular pole side; connections here would allow blood to exit without being adequately filtered. The capillary diameters throughout the glomerulus appeared to correspond with the amount of blood flow within them. The shortest path (minimum number of branches to travel from afferent to efferent arterioles) is relatively independent of glomerular size and is present primarily on the vascular pole size. This suggests that new branches and longer paths form on the urinary pole side. Network analysis indicates that the glomerular network does not form by repetitive longitudinal splitting of capillaries. Thus the 3D structure of the glomerular capillary network provides useful information with which to understand glomerular function. Other tissue structures in the body may benefit from this new three dimensional approach.