Renal Blood Circulation and Glomerular Filtration Flashcards
What is glomerular filtration?
Process whereby a clear fluid from which blood cells and macromolecules (e.g. Proteins) are excluded, is produced from the blood perfusing the glomerulus at the beginning of each nephron
Of the renal plasma flow how much becomes glomerular filtrate?
20%
What is the filtration fraction?
glomerular filtration rate/renal plasma flow
- represents the proportion of the fluid reaching the kidneys that passes into the renal tubules
What is a normal filtration fraction?
Fraction of plasma filtered is 20% of plasma flowing through the kidney
What are the 3 layers of the glomerular capillary wall?
- endothelium
- basement membrane
3, epithelium - podocytes
Describe the endothelium of the glomerular capillary wall?
has fenestrations - 70nm in diameter
- allow solutes and proteins through but not red blood cells
Describe the basement membrane of the glomerular capillary wall?
- has strong negative electrical charges
- Charges associated with proteoglycans
- negative charge repels plasma proteins - has tiny pores
- prevent plasma proteins from going through
Describe the epithelium of the glomerular capillaries?
interdigitated podocyte cells that encircle the outer surface of glomerulus
- filtration slits are found between these cells
Filtration depends on which molecular properties?
- size
- charge - positive ions are filtered more
- molecular weight
Filterability of substances by glomerular capillaries decreases with?
molecular weight
e.g. albumin
What is Dextran?
Polysaccharide that can be manufactured as neutral, -ve or +ve charge
- +ve charged molecules are filtered much more readily than –ve charged molecules
What is minimal change nephropathy?
a condition whereby there is loss of -ve charge in the basement membrane
- happens mostly in children
What is glomerular filtration rate?
The volume of fluid filtered in the glomerulus per unit time
- The sum of the filtration rates of all the
functioning nephrons
What is considered a normal filtration rate?
- 90-140 ml/min for males
- 80-125 ml/min for females
- GFR is ≈ 180 L/day in average human (125
ml/min)
Glomerular filtration rate is proportional to?
body surface area
Glomerular filtration rate can be calculated by?
measuring the excretion and plasma concentration of a substance that is freely filtered
e.g. inulin and creatinine
GFR declines with?
- age
2. renal disease
What are the determinants of GFR?
Starling forces
- Glomerular capillary hydrostatic pressure (Pgc)
- Colloid osmotic pressure (Pπ) in glomerular capillaries
- Bowman’s capsule hydrostatic pressure (Pbs)
What is glomerular capillary hydrostatic pressure?
the primary means for physiological regulation of GFR
- promotes filtration : pushes solute + water in blood plasma through glomerular filter
- Increase in glomerular hydrostatic pressure increases GFR, decrease in hydrostatic pressure reduces GFR