Renal Flashcards
What are the functions of the kidney?
Regulate blood pressure, regulate red blood cell production, regulate water and electrolyte balance, excrete metabolic waste products and foreign chemicals, regulate body fluid osmolality and electrolyte concentrations, endocrine gland, acid-base balance, gluconeogenesis
How much of the cardiac output do the kidneys receive?
22%
What is the functional unit of the kidney?
The nephron
Each kidney contains up to how many nephrons?
A million
At what age do the kidneys stop regenerating new nephrons?
40
What are the juxtamedullary nephrons and what percentage do they make up?
have glomeruli deep in the renal cortex near the medulla, 20-30%
What are cortical nephrons and what percentage do they make up?
have glomeruli located in the outer cortex, 70-80%
Describe the flow through the nephron.
Blood enters kidney via renal artery -> arteries -> afferent arterioles-> glomerulus -> efferent arterioles -> small veins -> renal vein
What is the importance of the vast recta?
Important for urine concentration - osmotic exchangers for the production
What are the steps for urine formation?
Glomerular filtration, reabsorption, secretion (then excretion removes)
What is the “formula” for excretion rate?
Filtration- reabsorption + secretion
Approximately how much is excreted per day?
1L
Glomerular filtration rate depends on what?
Rate of blood flow
What is the filtration fraction and its formulate?
Fraction of renal plasma flow that is filtered (20%), FF = GFR/RPF
What is GFR usually?
125 mL/min = 180 L/day
How many times a day is plasma volume filtered a day?
60
What are the three layers of the glomerular capillary membrane?
endothelium, basement membrane, podocytes (epithelial cells)
Which layer of the glomerular capillary membrane forms foot processes with slit pores to allow passage?
podocytes
What can happen if podocytes get injured?
Become misshapen and can allow proteins to exit and can cause proteinuria
Negatively charged molecules are filtered less or more easily than positively charged ones?
less easily
Where does the negative charge across the glomerulus arise from?
proteoglycans on the glycocalyx of the glomerular epithelium (is negative = repel other negatives)
Finding protein in urine for patients in hypertension can be early detection for what?
hypertensive renal disease
Finding protein in urine for patients in diabetes can be early detection for what?
diabetic nephropathy
Finding protein in urine for patients in pregnancy can be early detection for what?
gestational proteinuric hypertension
What are the determinants of GFR?
hydraulic conductance and net filtration pressure
What is hydraulic a measure of?
hydraulic conductivity and surface area of glomerular capillaries = 4.2 ml/min/100g
Diseases such as uncontrolled HTN and DM have what effect on hydraulic conductance?
reduce it by increasing the thickness of the glomerular capillary basement membrane
What is net filtration pressure?
net filtration pressure = glomerular hydrostatic pressure - Bowman’s capsule pressure - Glomerular oncotic pressure
What is the formula for GFR?
Kf x net filtration pressure
Which pressures favor filtration? which oppose filtration?
Pgc = favors, Pbs and oncotic pressure oppose filtration
What determines the oncotic pressure in the glomerular capillaries?
protein concentration
What happens when oncotic pressure reaches net ultrafiltration pressure?
becomes 0 and glomerular filtration stops = filtration equilibrium
Most of filtration occurs in the first _ of the capillary.
1/3
Increases in plasma protein concentration have what effect on oncotic pressure in the glomerular capillaries?
increase the pressure = decrease net ultrafiltration pressure and GFR
Decreases in plasma protein concentration have what effect on oncotic pressure in the glomerular capillaries?
decrease the pressure = increase net ultrafiltration pressure and GFR
What change in Bowman’s capsule hydrostatic pressure causes decreased GFR?
increase
Increasing glomerular capillary hydrostatic pressure has what effect on GFR?
increases
What determines capillary hydrostatic pressure?
arterial pressure, afferent arteriolar resistance, efferent arteriolar resistance
Increasing the pressure on outside of the afferent end of the capillary has what effect on the inside?
decreases Pg (decreases RPF and GFR) due to decreased blood flow = reduced filtration rate
Decreasing the pressure on the efferent end of the arterial has what effect on the in inside pressure?
increases Pg = decreased RPF but increased GFR (blood is restricted from exiting = increase net filtration rate)
Name an example of things that constrict the efferent arteriole.
low levels of AGT II
Name a couple examples of things that constrict the afferent arteriole.
SNS and high levels of AGT II
True/False: Even if efferent constriction is severe, GFR remains/increases.
False, if it is severe, the rise in Glom colloid oncotic pressure exceeds the rise in hydrostatic capillary pressure, eventually leading to a decrease in GFR
How does renal disease /DM/HTN cause a decrease in GFR?
by decreasing Kf
How does urinary obstruction cause a decrease in GFR?
increase hydrostatic pressure in the Bowman’s capsule
How does a decrease in renal blood flow or an increase in plasma proteins cause a decrease in GFR?
by increasing Glom colloid oncotic pressure
How does a decrease in arterial pressure cause a decrease in GFR?
by decreasing glom hydrostatic pressure
How does a decrease in AGT II (using ACE inhibitors) cause a decrease in GFR?
by decreasing resistance to the efferent arterioles = decrease Glom hydrostatic pressure
How does an increase in SMS activity/vasoconstrictor hormones cause a decrease in GFR?
by increasing the resistance of the afferent arterioles leading to a decrease in glom hydrostatic pressure
What is the formula for RBF?
change in pressure/resistance
What pressures are calculated in the RBF formula?
difference between renal artery pressure and renal vein pressure
Resistance in the RBF formula is the sum of what?
total renal vascular resistance = Ra + Re + Rv
What is the relationship between RBF and Oxygen?
Kidneys receive more O2 than needed due to their high blood flow - a large fraction of the renal O2 consumption is related to renal tubular sodium reabsorption (in turn related to GFR and rate of Na+ filtration
What are the types of neurohumoral control of GFR and RBF?
SNS/catecholamines, AGT II, Prostaglandins, Endothelial-derived Nitric Oxide (EDRF), endothelin
Describe the SNS control of GFR and RBF and name an example of cause.
produces vasoconstriction by alpha1 receptors which increase afferent and efferent arteriole resistance which decrease RBF and GFR, severe hemorrhage
Describe the AGT II control of GFR and RBF and name an example of cause.
vasoconstriction of both arterioles = increase resistance = decreases RBF but since efferent arterioles are more sensitive, low levels of AGTII increases GFR and high levels of it decrease GFR due to constriction of both
Describe the prostaglandin control of GFR and RBF and name an example of a cause.
vasodilate both arterioles increasing both rates, blockade of prostaglandin synthesis due to ex: NSAIDs, pt w/heart failure, cirrhosis
Describe the EDRF control of GFR and RBF and name an example of a cause.
decrease resistance of arterioles which increases GFR and RBF, Ex: endothelial dysfunction (atherosclerosis)
Describe the endothelin control of GFR and RBF and name an example of a cause.
vasoconstricts = increase resistance of the arterioles which decrease both, ex: acute renal failure, hepatorenal syndrome
What are the steps of local control (autoregulation) of GFR and RBF?
myogenic mechanism, macula densa feedback, AGT II
What two things are important for regulation of urine volume?
Good autoregulation + adaptive increase in tubular reabsorption
Describe the process of myogenic autoregulation.
increase in arterial pressure causes a stretch of the afferent arterioles which causes contraction of the smooth muscle walls, increasing resistance leading to opening of the stretch activated Ca2+ channels allowing entry of Ca2+ into the cell which increases tension, increasing vascular resistance which balances the increase in Pa and rates are kept constant
What is the role macula densa for tubuloglomerular feedback?
responds to the increase in delivery load by secreting a vasoactive substance that constricts afferent arterioles via a paracrine mechanism, returning the rates back to normal
Describe the process of macula densa feedback?
decrease GFR leads to NaCl delivery