Renal urate excretion at various plasma concentrations in the rat: a free-flow micropuncture study.

Free-flow micropuncture experiments were performed in male Sprague-Dawley rats undergoing moderate mannitol diuresis and infused with urate-containing solutions. The resulting plasma urate concentrations ranged from 37.5 +/- 2.4 to 601.2 +/- 23.8 muM. With urate loading, the fraction of filtered urate excreted in pelvic urine increased from 0.32 +/- 0.02 to 0.92 +/- 0.05 mu M, but net secretion was not observed. At normal urate levels net reabsorption occurred along superficial proximal tubules, whereas net secretion could be demonstrated at the highest plasma urate levels. Net movements of urate did not appear to occur across the walls of the lower segments of nephrons.