Analysis of Ion Channels in Glomeruli

Creative Bioarray is committed to establishing new protocols to provide clients with ion channel analysis services in glomeruli, including single channel analysis and ratometric calcium concentration measurements. Our professional scientific services will help clients determine the changes in the intracellular calcium concentration in the podocyte and channel activity, as well as study the response of intracellular calcium concentration changes to drug applications.

Introduction

The vertebrate kidneys are a pair of highly vascularized organs, and one of their main functions is blood filtration which is tightly controlled by renal glomeruli. Ion channels in glomerular cells play an important role in the overall regulation of renal function. Their dysregulation is associated with severe kidney disease that can progress to end-stage renal failure. Therefore, studying the characterization, regulation, and dysregulation of ion channels in the plasma membrane of glomerular cells can help to understand the mechanisms of ion channel-related glomerular disease and to develop potential therapeutic strategies.

Glomerular podocytes are the core components of the renal filtration barrier and play a role in the pathogenesis of most proteinuric glomerulopathies. These cells express many different types of ion channels, which mediate the regulation of cell function and cellular responses to the local environment. Changes in many channels, including TRPC6, TRPC5, and multiple ionotropic receptors, can contribute to the development of glomerular diseases and are therefore considered promising targets for drug development. A discussion of ion channels in the glomeruli will greatly accelerate drug discovery targeting these channels.

Fig. 1 Experimental scheme for single-channel analysis and calcium imaging of freshly isolated glomerular podocytes. (Ilatovskaya, 2015)

Our Services

Many studies on the role of TRPC channels in the functionality of the glomeruli have been conducted on cultured podocytes or in recombinant systems, which cannot provide a comprehensive setting for understanding channel regulation under physiological conditions. Considering the new demand for understanding the function of glomerular ion channels, we are committed to helping clients realize the electrophysiological recording of endogenous ion channels in their natural environment by combining glomerular isolation, endogenous current separation, electrophysiological skills, etc. We mainly provide our clients with single-channel analysis and calcium imaging services of freshly isolated glomerular podocytes.

• Isolation of rat glomeruli and confirmation of the integrity of podocytes in isolated glomeruli by fluorescence and electron microscopy.
• Single-channel activity analysis and electrophysiological recording of endogenous TRPC-like ion channels in the podocytes of isolated decapsulated glomeruli.
• Real-time monitoring of intracellular calcium concentration in podocytes by ratiometric confocal fluorescence.
• Image analysis of calcium measurement and calculation of intracellular calcium concentrations.

Applications

• Study on podocyte functions
• Study on ion channels and Ca²⁺ signaling in podocytes
• Study on ion channel dysregulation and glomerular diseases

The professional and experienced research team at Creative Bioarray is committed to providing clients with analysis services of ion channels in glomeruli. The protocols we have established allow our clients to investigate physiologically related mechanisms of various ion channel regulation under physiological and pathophysiological conditions, and open up a new direction for the research of glomerular diseases. If you are interested in our services, please feel free to contact us for more details.

Reference

1. Ilatovskaya, D. V.; et al. Single-channel analysis and calcium imaging in the podocytes of the freshly isolated glomeruli. Journal of Visualized Experiments, 2015 (100): e52850.