Molecular sieve of the rat glomerular basement membrane: a transmission electron microscopic study of enzyme-treated specimens.

Isolated rat glomerular basement membrane was treated with elastase and observed by transmission electron microscopy. The treatment with elastase revealed the fundamental structure of the glomerular basement membrane quite clearly, and enabled the observation of a sieve structure within the glomerular basement membrane. This sieve structure may play a major role in the filtration of blood as well as in the production of urine. Treatment with antibody showed that the sieve was mainly constituted of type IV collagen.