Segmental localization and quantitative characteristics of tubulitis in kidney biopsies from patients undergoing acute rejection.

The term tubulitis denotes infiltration of the renal tubular epithelium by mononuclear cells. Tubulitis is one of the most reliable signs of acute renal allograft rejection. However, its segmental localization and quantitative characteristics are not precisely known. To investigate this question, formalin-fixed kidney biopsy specimens from 15 patients with transplanted allografts undergoing acute rejection were studied stereologically by identifying cortical tubules with segment-specific markers. The periodic acid-Schiff reaction, peanut lectin, and antibodies against Tamm-Horsfall protein and epidermal cytokeratins, all applied to the same section, were used to identify the profiles of proximal tubules (PTs), distal convoluted tubules (DCTs), distal straight tubules (DSTs), and the cortical collecting system (CCS, connecting tubules and cortical collecting ducts), respectively. Two parameters, the relative intrasegmental length and the average intensity of tubular damage, were determined to describe the degree of tubulitis quantitatively. Tubulitis was most prominent in the DCTs, followed by the CCS. The average intensity of tubulitis was lowest in the DSTs. The results indicate that the PTs are not the main site of tubulitis, despite the fact that they are regarded primary targets of the rejection response.