Search results
Results from the WOW.Com Content Network
The glomerulus (pl.: glomeruli) is a network of small blood vessels (capillaries) known as a tuft, located at the beginning of a nephron in the kidney. Each of the two kidneys contains about one million nephrons. The tuft is structurally supported by the mesangium (the space between the blood vessels), composed of intraglomerular mesangial cells.
The glomerular basement membrane of the kidney is the basal lamina layer of the glomerulus.The glomerular endothelial cells, the glomerular basement membrane, and the filtration slits between the podocytes perform the filtration function of the glomerulus, separating the blood in the capillaries from the filtrate that forms in Bowman's capsule. [1]
The renal corpuscle consists of a tuft of capillaries called a glomerulus and a cup-shaped structure called Bowman's capsule. The renal tubule extends from the capsule. The capsule and tubule are connected and are composed of epithelial cells with a lumen. A healthy adult has 1 to 1.5 million nephrons in each kidney.
Diagram of the circulation related to a single glomerulus, associated tubule, and collecting system The renal corpuscle in the cortex (outer layer) of the kidney. At the top, the renal corpuscle containing the glomerulus. The filtered blood exits into the renal tubule as filtrate, at right. At left, blood flows from the afferent arteriole (red ...
A. The endothelial cells of the glomerulus; 1. pore (fenestra). B. Glomerular basement membrane: 1. lamina rara interna 2. lamina densa 3. lamina rara externa C. Podocytes: 1. enzymatic and structural protein 2. filtration slit 3. diaphragma. Podocytes have primary processes called trabeculae, which wrap around the glomerular capillaries. [2]
Diagram showing Bowman's capsule as part of the renal corpuscle. The process of filtration of the blood in the Bowman's capsule is ultrafiltration, and the normal rate of filtration is 125 ml/min, equivalent to 80 times the daily blood volume. [citation needed] It is a major site for blood filtration (including glomerulus)
Fish glomerulus differs from the mammalian glomerulus in terms of the number of dendrites that it receives from the mitral cells. In a mammalian olfactory system, a single dendrite from a mitral cell enters a single glomerulus. However, in fish, one or more dendrites from mitral cells enter one or more glomerulus. [13]
The afferent arterioles, then, enter Bowman's capsule and end in the glomerulus. From each glomerulus, the corresponding efferent arteriole arises and then exits the capsule near the point where the afferent arteriole enters. Distally, efferent arterioles branch out to form dense plexuses (i.e., capillary beds) around their adjacent renal tubules.