Department of Physiology & Cell Biology, University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine; Department of Physiology & Membrane Biology, University of California School of Medicine.
Department of Physiology & Cell Biology, University of Nevada, Reno School of Medicine.
J Vis Exp. 2021 Apr 30(170). doi: 10.3791/62040.
The renal pelvis (RP) is a funnel-shaped, smooth muscle structure that facilitates normal urine transport from the kidney to the ureter by regular, propulsive contractions. Regular RP contractions rely on pacemaker activity, which originates from the most proximal region of the RP at the pelvis-kidney junction (PKJ). Due to the difficulty in accessing and preserving intact preparations of the PKJ, most investigations on RP pacemaking have focused on single-cell electrophysiology and Ca imaging experiments. Although important revelations on RP pacemaking have emerged from such work, these experiments have several intrinsic limitations, including the inability to accurately determine cellular identity in mixed suspensions and the lack of in situ imaging of RP pacemaker activity. These factors have resulted in a limited understanding of the mechanisms that underlie normal rhythmic RP contractions. In this paper, a protocol is described to prepare intact segments of mouse PKJ using a vibratome sectioning technique. By combining this approach with mice expressing cell-specific reporters and genetically encoded Ca indicators, investigators may be able to more accurately study the specific cell types and mechanisms responsible for peristaltic RP contractions that are vital for normal urine transport.
肾盂 (RP) 呈漏斗状,由平滑肌构成,通过有规律的推进性收缩促进尿液从肾脏顺利排入输尿管。RP 的正常收缩依赖于起搏活动,起搏活动起源于 RP 最靠近肾盂-肾脏交界处 (PKJ) 的近端。由于难以获取和保存完整的 PKJ 标本,大多数关于 RP 起搏的研究都集中在单细胞电生理学和 Ca 成像实验上。尽管这些工作揭示了关于 RP 起搏的重要发现,但这些实验存在几个内在的局限性,包括无法在混合悬浮液中准确确定细胞的身份,以及无法对 RP 起搏活动进行原位成像。这些因素导致人们对维持正常节律性 RP 收缩的机制的理解有限。本文描述了一种使用振动切片技术制备完整的小鼠 PKJ 段的方案。通过将这种方法与表达细胞特异性报告基因和遗传编码 Ca 指示剂的小鼠结合使用,研究人员可能能够更准确地研究负责对正常尿液运输至关重要的蠕动性 RP 收缩的特定细胞类型和机制。