Estimating glomerular number in situ using magnetic resonance imaging and biopsy

John M. Basgen; Michael W Steffes; Arthur E. Stillman; Michael Mauer

doi:10.1038/ki.1994.218

Estimating glomerular number in situ using magnetic resonance imaging and biopsy

John M. Basgen, Michael W Steffes, Arthur E. Stillman, Michael Mauer

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

43 Scopus citations

Abstract

In the past researchers have used an estimate of one million as the number of glomeruli in each human kidney. However, recent work on excised kidneys has demonstrated a large variation in glomerular number from one person to another (330,000 to 1,400,000) per kidney. Theoretically an in situ estimate of glomerular number could be obtained if renal cortical volume, volume density of glomeruli per cortex [Vv(glom/cortex)] and mean glomerular volume are known. We used a dog model to demonstrate that an accurate estimate of cortical volume could be obtained in situ using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Vv(glom/cortex) and mean glomerular volume were obtained from needle biopsies. An independent and more direct method (the fractionator) was used to validate the estimate of glomerular number obtained using MRI and renal biopsy. On average there was very good agreement between the fractionator method (379,000 ± 40,000) and the MRI/renal biopsy method (376,000 ± 108,000) for the 10 dog kidneys measured; however we found up to a 36% difference between the two methods in an individual kidney. Nonetheless, the estimate from the MRI/renal biopsy method has more precision than the assumption that there are one million glomeruli per human kidney.

Original language	English (US)
Pages (from-to)	1668-1672
Number of pages	5
Journal	Kidney international
Volume	45
Issue number	6
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1038/ki.1994.218
State	Published - Jun 1994

Bibliographical note

Funding Information:
Preliminary results of the work were presented at the Eighth Inter-national Congress for Stereology, Irvine, California, USA, August 25—29, 1991 and the Twenty-Sixth Annual Meeting of the American Society of Nephrology, Boston, Massachusetts, November 14—17, 1993. Financial support was provided by the National Institutes of Health (DK43605) and the American Diabetes Association, Minnesota Affiliate, Inc. and the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation. The authors are grateful to Bruce Wigness and Dale Arens for providing surgical help,

Publisher link

10.1038/ki.1994.218

Find It

Find It at U of M Libraries

Cite this

@article{f087d890896c4f329255760e8185b657,

title = "Estimating glomerular number in situ using magnetic resonance imaging and biopsy",

abstract = "In the past researchers have used an estimate of one million as the number of glomeruli in each human kidney. However, recent work on excised kidneys has demonstrated a large variation in glomerular number from one person to another (330,000 to 1,400,000) per kidney. Theoretically an in situ estimate of glomerular number could be obtained if renal cortical volume, volume density of glomeruli per cortex [Vv(glom/cortex)] and mean glomerular volume are known. We used a dog model to demonstrate that an accurate estimate of cortical volume could be obtained in situ using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Vv(glom/cortex) and mean glomerular volume were obtained from needle biopsies. An independent and more direct method (the fractionator) was used to validate the estimate of glomerular number obtained using MRI and renal biopsy. On average there was very good agreement between the fractionator method (379,000 ± 40,000) and the MRI/renal biopsy method (376,000 ± 108,000) for the 10 dog kidneys measured; however we found up to a 36% difference between the two methods in an individual kidney. Nonetheless, the estimate from the MRI/renal biopsy method has more precision than the assumption that there are one million glomeruli per human kidney.",

author = "Basgen, {John M.} and Steffes, {Michael W} and Stillman, {Arthur E.} and Michael Mauer",

note = "Funding Information: Preliminary results of the work were presented at the Eighth Inter-national Congress for Stereology, Irvine, California, USA, August 25—29, 1991 and the Twenty-Sixth Annual Meeting of the American Society of Nephrology, Boston, Massachusetts, November 14—17, 1993. Financial support was provided by the National Institutes of Health (DK43605) and the American Diabetes Association, Minnesota Affiliate, Inc. and the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation. The authors are grateful to Bruce Wigness and Dale Arens for providing surgical help,",

year = "1994",

month = jun,

doi = "10.1038/ki.1994.218",

language = "English (US)",

volume = "45",

pages = "1668--1672",

journal = "Kidney International",

issn = "0085-2538",

publisher = "Nature Publishing Group",

number = "6",

}

TY - JOUR

T1 - Estimating glomerular number in situ using magnetic resonance imaging and biopsy

AU - Basgen, John M.

AU - Steffes, Michael W

AU - Stillman, Arthur E.

AU - Mauer, Michael

N1 - Funding Information: Preliminary results of the work were presented at the Eighth Inter-national Congress for Stereology, Irvine, California, USA, August 25—29, 1991 and the Twenty-Sixth Annual Meeting of the American Society of Nephrology, Boston, Massachusetts, November 14—17, 1993. Financial support was provided by the National Institutes of Health (DK43605) and the American Diabetes Association, Minnesota Affiliate, Inc. and the Juvenile Diabetes Foundation. The authors are grateful to Bruce Wigness and Dale Arens for providing surgical help,

PY - 1994/6

Y1 - 1994/6

N2 - In the past researchers have used an estimate of one million as the number of glomeruli in each human kidney. However, recent work on excised kidneys has demonstrated a large variation in glomerular number from one person to another (330,000 to 1,400,000) per kidney. Theoretically an in situ estimate of glomerular number could be obtained if renal cortical volume, volume density of glomeruli per cortex [Vv(glom/cortex)] and mean glomerular volume are known. We used a dog model to demonstrate that an accurate estimate of cortical volume could be obtained in situ using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Vv(glom/cortex) and mean glomerular volume were obtained from needle biopsies. An independent and more direct method (the fractionator) was used to validate the estimate of glomerular number obtained using MRI and renal biopsy. On average there was very good agreement between the fractionator method (379,000 ± 40,000) and the MRI/renal biopsy method (376,000 ± 108,000) for the 10 dog kidneys measured; however we found up to a 36% difference between the two methods in an individual kidney. Nonetheless, the estimate from the MRI/renal biopsy method has more precision than the assumption that there are one million glomeruli per human kidney.

AB - In the past researchers have used an estimate of one million as the number of glomeruli in each human kidney. However, recent work on excised kidneys has demonstrated a large variation in glomerular number from one person to another (330,000 to 1,400,000) per kidney. Theoretically an in situ estimate of glomerular number could be obtained if renal cortical volume, volume density of glomeruli per cortex [Vv(glom/cortex)] and mean glomerular volume are known. We used a dog model to demonstrate that an accurate estimate of cortical volume could be obtained in situ using magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). Vv(glom/cortex) and mean glomerular volume were obtained from needle biopsies. An independent and more direct method (the fractionator) was used to validate the estimate of glomerular number obtained using MRI and renal biopsy. On average there was very good agreement between the fractionator method (379,000 ± 40,000) and the MRI/renal biopsy method (376,000 ± 108,000) for the 10 dog kidneys measured; however we found up to a 36% difference between the two methods in an individual kidney. Nonetheless, the estimate from the MRI/renal biopsy method has more precision than the assumption that there are one million glomeruli per human kidney.

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=0028276752&partnerID=8YFLogxK

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=0028276752&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1038/ki.1994.218

DO - 10.1038/ki.1994.218

M3 - Article

C2 - 7933814

AN - SCOPUS:0028276752

SN - 0085-2538

VL - 45

SP - 1668

EP - 1672

JO - Kidney International

JF - Kidney International

IS - 6

ER -

Estimating glomerular number in situ using magnetic resonance imaging and biopsy

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Publisher link

Find It

Other files and links

Fingerprint

Cite this