Renal fumarase-activities during experimental and chronic human pyelonephritis.

In chronic experimental and human pyelonephritis (PN) renal enzyme and phosphatide analyses as well as quantitative histological examinations were performed simultaneously. The results reported in this study only refer to fumarase (FUM) activities. Glomerular FUM-activities initially increased steeply up to 31 days, thereafter the values decreased, but being still elevated till 212 days. Only in the 261-days series the FUM-activities were absolutely decreased. In the cortical tubules of the rabbit kidneys the enzyme activities also steeply increased until 64 days, in the 100-days-series they were already depressed. After 212 and 261 days the tubular FUM-activities were extremely depressed. In the medulla the FUM-activities similarly showed steeply increasing values till 31 days. Thereafter a decrease was stated in the 64-days-series persisting up to 100 days. Finally, the values were pathologically depressed in the 212- and 261-days-series. In the "spontaneously healed up" tissue the glomerular FUM was slightly increased, the cortico-tubular one was more increased whereas the medullar activities were decreased. The human samples of pyelonephritic nephrocirrhosis showed about half than the normal FUM-activities in the glomerula. In the cortical tubules they were still more depressed. Also in the medulla the values were decreased. The significance calculations (universally applied t-test) showed an overwhelming majority of values with significance (p less than 0.001). The measured enzyme activities well correlate with the results of quantitative histological examinations.