Basement membrane charge in human glomerular disease

Fixed anionic charges in the mammalian glomerulus, on both the basement membrane and the epithelial cell foot processes, are believed to form an important part of the glomerular filtration barrier. There is good evidence that their loss causes proteinuria. The charges can be visualized ultrastructurally using cationic dyes, but the requirement of these techniques for perfusion or immersion of fresh tissue has largely confined such studies to experimental models. We have extended the widely used polyethyleneimine technique, to study the charge of glomerular basement membranes in human tissue reprocessed out of paraffin blocks up to 10 years old. We studied selected cases of glomerular disease, where the diagnosis was not in any doubt. In the majority of diseases studied, a continuous charge layer persisted despite severe abnormalities of the basement membrane. Two exceptions were found. In amyloidosis, accumulation of fibrils was associated with a considerable decrease or loss of stainable basement membrane charge. In S.L.E., numerous small defects in the charge layer were noted. The persistence of charge is contrary to reported findings in several animal models of glomerular disease, including puromycin nephrosis, Heymann nephritis and streptozotocin diabetes. Although this method is not subject to precise quantitative analysis, we conclude that in the majority of cases, proteinuria in man is not caused by an extensive loss of glomerular basement membrane anionic charge.