Quantitative structural aspects of the renal glomeruli of hypertensive mice.

Kidneys of genetically hypertensive and normotensive mice were studied with respect to kidney weight, number and volume of glomeruli, and filtration surface area. The hypertensive animals have a larger kidney weight to body weight ratio and possess fewer glomeruli per kidney. The superficial cortical glomeruli of the hypertensives are slightly smaller in volume than those of the normotensives although the filtration surface area is similar. The juxtamedullary glomeruli of the hypertensives are both smaller in volume and have less filtration surface area. The possible implications of these findings in the development and/or maintenance of hypertension are discussed.