Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 23, 2026

Using 2-Photon Microscopy to Quantify the Effects of Chronic Unilateral Ureteral Obstruction on Glomerular Processes
Published on: March 4, 2022
Effects of maternal undernutrition on glomerular ultrastructure in rat offspring
Chung-Ming Chen1, Hsiu-Chu Chou
1Department of Pediatrics, Taipei Medical University Hospital, Taipei, Taiwan. cmchen@tmu.edu.tw
Background:
Intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) can reduce glomerutar number and increase blood pressure in rats. The aim of this study was to assess the effects of maternal undernutrition during late gestation on-glomerutar ultrastructure in adult rat offspring.
Methods:
Timed pregnant Sprague-Dawley rats were used. Control dams received regular food throughout pregnancy, while experimental dams received 50% of control food intake from days 15-21 of gestation. GLomerular ultrastructure was quantified in male offspring at 16 weeks of age.
Results:
The ultrastructure of the filtration apparatus in the IUGR rat glomeruli was indistinguishable from that in the control rat glomeruli. The relative volumes of the glomerulus occupied by podocytes, capillaries, and mesangium, and the thickness of the glomerular basement membrane (GBM), and width of the filtration slit were comparable between control and IUGR rats.
Conclusion:
These results indicate that glomerular ultrastructure is not affected by maternal undernutrition and suggest that altered glomerular ultrastructure is not a contributory factor to the pathogenesis of hypertension following maternal undernutrition.
Related Concept Videos
Diabetic Nephropathy
Renal Corpuscle
Glomerulus: Structure and Function
The glomerulus is a tiny, intricate network of capillaries located at the beginning of the nephron. It's enveloped by the Bowman's capsule and receives its blood supply from an afferent arteriole, which divides into numerous capillaries...
Acute Kidney Injury II: Pathophysiology
Physiology of the Genitourinary System I: Renal Blood Flow and Glomerular Filtration
