Effects of variations in renal hemodynamics on the time course of renin secretion rate

The effects of variations in renal hemodynamics on the time course of renin secretion were studied in dogs anesthetized with pentobarbital-chloralose. Hemodynamic changes were induced either locally in kidneys perfused in situ via an extracorporeal circuit (with or without a pump system) or systemically by hemorrhage or nitroprusside infusion. In the autoperfused kidney the reduction of renal perfusion pressure to approximately one-half of the arterial pressure by inflow occlusion caused an increase in renal conductance (renal vasodilation) and an increase in renin secretion rate (RSR). In the pump-perfused kidney, a step increase in renal blood flow (RBF) caused renal vasoconstriction and a decrease in RSR; a step decrease in RBF caused renal vasodilation and an increase in RSR. Following step changes in RBF, the time constant of the alterations of renal conductance was 56.5 s, and the time constant of the RSR responses was 80.1 s. The total time required to reach a steady state for RSR lagged behind that for renal conductance by approximately 5 min. These differences reflect the time needed for the kidney to release renin in response to changes in renal vascular caliber. The results suggest that renin release occurs in response to the autoregulatory dilation of the renal arterioles. When systemic hypotension was induced by nitroprusside infusion, RSR also increased together with the renal conductance. Following hemorrhage, however, RSR increased despite a decrease in renal conductance, reflecting the role of neurohumoral factors in causing renin release in this case. The comparison of renin secretion following different types of hemodynamic alterations serves to elucidate the mechanisms of renin secretion.