The Kidneys, the Renal System, and the Latest Research

The kidneys are an important component of the renal system. Blood is carried to the kidneys where waste products are filtered in structures called nephrons. Each nephron is composed of a cluster of capillaries (called a glomerulus) and a tubule through which waste is shunted. The glomerulus is surrounded by a capsule, called Bowman’s capsule, which filters waste products from the blood. Waste exits Bowman’s capsule and enters a series of renal tubules, where it is processed into urine.

Studies Using LifeLine^® Renal Epithelial Cells

Romero et al. examined the protective effects of L-citrulline against diabetes-induced nephropathy. They demonstrated that L-citrulline treatment ameliorated the severity of diabetes in both mouse and rat in vivo models. In particular, L-citrulline protected against the nephropathic effects of hyperglycemia and induced an anti-inflammatory response. The researchers used Lifeline^® human renal proximal tubule cells grown in RenaLife^® media to follow up their in vivo findings and demonstrated that L-citrulline treatment in high glucose media induced expression of the anti-inflammatory cytokine, IL-10, and reduced expression of the pro-inflammatory cytokines IL-12 and IL-1b. These results suggest that L-citrulline has a beneficial effect on diabetes-related nephropathy.

Shizmaier et al., investigated the mechanism by which Englerin A, a naturally occurring compound, causes renal cancer cell death. The researchers used Lifeline^® human renal proximal tubule cells grown in RenaLife™ media as normal control renal cells to determine the cytotoxicity of Englerin A. They found that Englerin A causes a selective decrease in the cell viability of renal cancer cells, but had no effect on the viability of normal renal cells. They determined that Englerin A kills renal cancer cells by inducing necrotic cell death, suggesting that Englerin A might be effective in renal cancer, with little to no toxicity to normal cells.

Lifeline^® renal cells can be used in high throughput assays, such as cytotoxicity and drug screening assays. Customers that use our renal cells for these types of assays report high reproducibility with coefficients of variability below 10% (usually 4-8%). Available renal epithelial cell types and renal cell culture media from Lifeline^® include:

• Human Renal Cortical Epithelial Cells (HRCEC)
• Human Renal Proximal Tubule Cells (HRPTC)
• Human Renal Mixed Epithelial Cells (HRMixEC)
• Human Renal Medullary EpithelialCells (HRMedEC)
• RenaLife™ Epithelial Culture Medium

Lifeline^® renal epithelial cells can be used to:

• Study normal renal cell function and physiology
• Screen for potential therapeutic compounds
• Evaluate the effects of abnormal physiological conditions on normal renal cell function

Are you using LifeLine^® cells in your research? Tell us how you have been using Lifeline^® renal cells and renal cell growth media!