A Review of the Uses and Disadvantages of Various Renal Micropuncture Techniques

... A Review of the Uses and Disadvantages of Various Renal Micropuncture Techniques This essay will critically review some of the major uses of renal micropuncture techniques, focusing in particular on the stationary method, free-flow micropuncture and renal microperfusion, the latter including both in vivo and in vitro methods. The essay will conclude with a short review of other uses of micropuncture. Wearn and Richards (1924) were the first people to use micropuncture successfully on the kidney. They successfully inserted a micropipette into the glomerulus of a single amphibian nephron and their results provided conclusive evidence that ultrafiltration of the blood occurred at this site. Walker, Bott, Oliver and MacDowell (1941) later extended the technique to the proximal and distal convoluted tubules. They demonstrated isosmotic reabsorption in the proximal convoluted tubule, and an above plasma concentration of chloride ions. This latter result implied that reabsorption in the kidney was not a simple passive

want to read more? →