The nephron of swiftlet - an ultrastructural study
It has been reported that the structural organization of the swiftlet nephron resembled that of the reptilian which was “loopless” – absence of the descending and ascending limbs of the loop of Henle. Being loopless and with a large cortex occupied mainly by the proximal tubules it is hypothes...
Saved in:
| Main Author: | |
|---|---|
| Format: | Project Paper Report |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
2016
|
| Online Access: | http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/78185/1/FPV%202016%2032%20-%20IR.pdf http://psasir.upm.edu.my/id/eprint/78185/ |
| Tags: |
Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
|
| Institution: | Universiti Putra Malaysia |
| Language: | English |
| Summary: | It has been reported that the structural organization of the swiftlet nephron
resembled that of the reptilian which was “loopless” – absence of the descending and
ascending limbs of the loop of Henle. Being loopless and with a large cortex
occupied mainly by the proximal tubules it is hypothesized that the swiftlet’s
nephron is structurally simple but functionally efficient. Accordingly the present
study examined the morphology of the swiftlet’s nephron at the ultrastructural level
and towards this objective samples of the swiftlet’s kidney collected were processed
for transmission electron microscopy. Numerous microvilli, a high incidence of
mitochondria and an extensive indentation and infolding of the basal epithelium of
the proximal tubule indicated enhanced reabsorption of glomerular filtrate and its
release into peritubular capillary. Efficiency of the nephron is further augmented by the tubules of the intermediate segment which also showed similar structural
evidences – microvilli, mitochondria and basal indentations and infoldings -
indicating there was still considerable reabsorption of glomerular filtrate in this part
of the nephric tubules. The distal convoluted tubules and collecting ducts also
showed evidences of reabsorption and release of glomerular filtrate into peritubular
capillary. An interesting observation in this study was the presence of many lipid
droplets in the lumen of the nephron. Microvilli with dilated apical ends could be
specially designed for the absorption of lipids in the intermediate segment. Thus the
nephron of the swiftlet is simple as it is loopless but highly efficient as reabsorption
take place throughout the entire length of the nephron. |
|---|