Age-related change in brush borders of rat kidney cortex

Age-related change of rat renal brush borders was examined with electron microscopy and biochemical procedures. Total activity of renal brush border enzymes, such as alkaline phosphatase and leucine aminopeptidase in the homogenate, was significantly decreased with age. Acid phosphatase activity and protein content were not significantly changed with age. Specific activity of leucine aminopeptidase in brush border fraction was significantly decreased at a later stage of age. Protein content of brush border fraction was decreased significantly with age. On sodium dodecyl sulfate-polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, some of the proteins disappeared during aging. Electron microscopic observations of kidney cortex showed that microvilli of renal brush borders from old rats were observed to be fewer than those from the young; epithelial cells in young rats have more densely packed brush border projections than those in old rats. From these results, it is suggested that during aging renal brush borders are degraded, and that protein components of the brush borders were different between old and young.