The lymphatics of the kidney and the formation of renal lymph

Abstract

SUMIARY1. The anatomy of the renal lymphatics and the flow and composition of renal lymph have been investigated in sheep. Lymphatic capillaries were demonstrated in the cortex and cortico-medullary areas of the sheep's kidney but not within the medulla. The lymph formed in the sheep's kidney drains from the hilum through several small lymphatics; there is no lymphatic drainage from the renal capsule.2. Lymph flow from the sheep's kidney varied from 05 to 3 0 ml./hr. The concentrations of electrolytes and urea in renal lymph were found to be similar to lymph from other regions of the body, but the concentration of endogenous creatinine was lower. The average concentration of protein in renal lymph was 43 % of the plasma levels; there was a significantly higher proportion of albumin in renal lymph than in plasma. When labelled albumin was injected intravenously, the specific activities of the plasma and renal lymph albumin equilibrated in about 2 hr. [1251]hippuran the ratio was 034. It was considered that the concentration of these substances in renal lymph was similar to the concentration in renal vein plasma.4. The concentration of renin enzyme was on the average about 8 times higher in renal lymph than in jugular vein or renal vein plasma or in lymph from the hind limbs.5. Renal lymph appeared to be formed principally, if not entirely, in the renal cortex and appeared to be a modified filtrate derived from post-

Lymphatic Neoangiogenesis in Human Kidney Transplants Is Associated with Immunologically Active Lymphocytic Infiltrates

“…In the cortex of normal human kidney, podoplanin/LYVE-1/Prox-1-expressing lymphatic vessels were confined to the adventitia of large-and middle-sized arteries, as described previously (19). This pattern of distribution persisted in acute phases of transplant rejection with intense interstitial mononuclear infiltration.…”

Albumin permeability of the peritubular capillaries in rat renal cortex.

“…Such a rapid turnover of the interstitial albumin pool has not been detected in studies on renal lymph. Equilibration of albumin specific activity between plasma and lymph took nearly 2 hr in dogs (Pintar & O'Morchoe, 1970), sheep (McIntosh & Morris, 1971), and rats (Wolgast, Ulfendahl, Killskog, Rasmussen, Atkins & Pinter, 1974, and present study). A possible explanation for this lack of agreement is that, whereas tracer albumin might cross rapidly into the interstitium from the circulating plasma, the slow flow of lymph in the intrarenal lymphatic vessels might delay the appearance of the tracer at the point where lymph is collected.…”

The Kidney-Renal Lymph Node-System Contributes to Cross-Tolerance against Innocuous Circulating Antigen

“…In contrast, innocuous Ag injected into the skin reached the LN through lymph vessels before skin-derived DCs had immigrated (56,57). Also the kidney is connected with its draining LN by lymph vessels, as demonstrated by cannulating experiments in sheep (58). As cannulation of the tiny renal lymph vessels of mice has not been achieved yet, we were unable to directly prove that rapid cell-independent relocation of filterable Ag occurred through lymph vessels.…”