Cell-specific protein and gene expression in the juxtaglomerular apparatus

1. The juxtaglomerular apparatus (JGA) consists of a tubular component, the macula densa (MD), attached to a vascular component consisting of the afferent and efferent arterioles and the extraglomerular mesangium. The JGA is richly innervated by sympathetic fibres. 2. The MD is morphologically, histochemically and functionally different from the ascending thick portion of the loop of Henle where it is located. 3. The vascular component includes the vascular smooth muscle cells of the arteriole, the renin-producing cells or juxtaglomerular cells, extraglomerular mesangial cells (Goormaghtigh cells) and endothelial cells. They are coupled by gap junctions. 4. Physiological evidence indicates that the composition of tubular fluid at the MD regulates renin secretion and glomerular haemodynamics and that the JGA is important in the maintenance of body salt-water homeostasis. Evidence suggests that the MD exerts its action on the vascular component through a paracrine mechanism.