We recently cloned a novel gene, NPHS2, involved in autosomal recessive steroid-resistant nephrotic syndrome. This gene encodes a novel podocyte protein, podocin. Given its similarity with the stomatin family proteins, podocin is predicted to be an integral membrane protein with a single membrane domain forming a hairpin-like structure placing both N- and C-termini in the cytosol. Here, we show by in situ hybridization, that during development, the NPHS2 transcript is first expressed in mesonephric podocytes from the S-shaped body and, later, in the metanephric kidney, in the future podocytes at the late S-shaped body stage. In the mature kidney, NPHS2 is exclusively expressed in the podocytes of mature glomeruli. We generated rabbit polyclonal antibodies against fusion proteins derived from the N- and the C-terminal regions of podocin which detected a single band of 49-kd in transfected HEK293 cell lysates by immunoprecipitation and Western blotting. By immunohistology, podocin was detected in podocytes from the early capillary loop stage in the developing nephrons, and at the basal pole, along the GBM, in mature glomeruli. By electron microscopy, we demonstrate that podocin is facing the slit diaphragm with its two ends in the cytoplasm of the foot processes, in agreement with its predicted structure. Our results suggest that podocin could serve to anchor directly or indirectly components of the slit diaphragm to the cytoskeleton.

Podocytes are specialized epithelial cells covering the basement membrane of the glomerulus in the kidney. The molecular mechanisms underlying the role of podocytes in glomerular filtration are still largely unknown. We generated podocin-deficient (Nphs2 ؊/؊ ) mice to investigate the function of podocin, a protein expressed at the insertion of the slit diaphragm in podocytes and defective in a subset of patients with steroid-resistant nephrotic syndrome and focal and segmental glomerulosclerosis. Nphs2 ؊/؊ mice developed proteinuria during the antenatal period and died a few days after birth from renal failure caused by massive mesangial sclerosis. Electron microscopy revealed the extensive fusion of podocyte foot processes and the lack of a slit diaphragm in the remaining foot process junctions. Using real-time PCR and immunolabeling, we showed that the expression of other slit diaphragm components was modified in Nphs2 ؊/؊ kidneys: the expression of the nephrin gene was downregulated, whereas that of the ZO1 and CD2AP genes appeared to be upregulated. Interestingly, the progression of the renal disease, as well as the presence or absence of renal vascular lesions, depends on the genetic background. Our data demonstrate the crucial role of podocin in the establishment of the glomerular filtration barrier and provide a suitable model for mapping and identifying modifier genes involved in glomerular diseases caused by podocyte injuries.Glomeruli are specialized structures responsible for blood filtration in the kidney and are targets of injury in a number of human diseases. Plasma ultrafiltration occurs through the glomerular filtration barrier, which is composed of highly specialized visceral epithelial cells called podocytes, a fenestrated capillary endothelium, and an intervening glomerular basement membrane (GBM) (28). Podocytes are octopus-like cells (18), comprising a cell body and cytoplasmic extensions called major processes, which divide into actin-rich foot processes interdigitating over each capillary loop and counteracting the distensive forces. Each foot process is attached to its neighbor along its length by an intercellular adherens-type junction (46), the slit diaphragm (SD), which is located just above the GBM. The recent discovery of several novel podocyte proteins and the description of their physical and functional interactions highlighted the critical role of the SD complex and of the actin cytoskeleton in the maintenance of the glomerular filtration barrier (34, 39; reviewed in references 31 and 41).Glomerular diseases are associated with leakage of proteins across the filter into the urine and with disappearance (effacement) of podocyte foot processes. Whether effacement of foot processes is the cause or consequence of the glomerular filter alterations is uncertain. However, in renal diseases progressing toward focal and segmental glomerulosclerosis (FSGS), podocytes are now thought to be the primary targets, responsible for the development of the lesion. FSGS is characterized by segmental ...

Cystinosis is an autosomal recessive disorder characterized by an accumulation of intralysosomal cystine. The causative gene, CTNS, encodes cystinosin, a seven-transmembrane-domain protein, which we recently showed to be a lysosomal cystine transporter. The most severe and frequent form of cystinosis, the infantile form, appears around 6 to 12 months, with a proximal tubulopathy (de Toni-Debré-Fanconi syndrome) and ocular damage. End-stage renal failure is reached by 10 years of age. Accumulation of cystine in all tissues eventually leads to multisystemic disease. Treatment with cysteamine, which reduces the concentration of intracellular cystine, delays disease progression but has undesirable side effects. We report the first Ctns knockout mouse model generated using a promoter trap approach. We replaced the last four Ctns exons by an internal ribosome entry site-␤gal-neo cassette and showed that the truncated protein was mislocalized and nonfunctional. Ctns ؊/؊ mice accumulated cystine in all organs tested, and cystine crystals, pathognomonic of cystinosis, were observed. Ctns ؊/؊ mice developed ocular changes similar to those observed in affected individuals, bone defects and behavioral anomalies. Interestingly, Ctns ؊/؊ mice did not develop signs of a proximal tubulopathy, or renal failure. A preliminary therapeutic trial using an oral administration of cysteamine was carried out and demonstrated the efficiency of this treatment for cystine clearance in Ctns ؊/؊ mice. This animal model will prove an invaluable and unique tool for testing emerging therapeutics for cystinosis.

Collagen IV is a major structural component of basement membranes. In the glomerular basement membrane (GBM) of the kidney, the alpha3, alpha4, and alpha5(IV) collagen chains form a distinct network that is essential for the long-term stability of the glomerular filtration barrier, and is absent in most patients affected with Alport syndrome, a progressive inherited nephropathy associated with mutation in COL4A3, COL4A4, or COL4A5 genes. To investigate, in vivo, the regulation of the expression, assembly, and function of the alpha3alpha4alpha5(IV) protomer, we have generated a yeast artificial chromosome transgenic line of mice carrying the human COL4A3-COL4A4 locus. Transgenic mice expressed the human alpha3 and alpha4(IV) chains in a tissue-specific manner. In the kidney, when expressed onto a Col4a3(-/-) background, the human alpha3(IV) chain restored the expression of and co-assembled with the mouse alpha4 and alpha5(IV) chains specifically at sites where the human alpha3(IV) was expressed, demonstrating that the expression of all three chains is required for network assembly. The co-assembly of the human and mouse chains into a hybrid network in the GBM restores a functional GBM and rescues the Alport phenotype, providing further evidence that defective assembly of the alpha3-alpha4-alpha5(IV) protomer, caused by mutations in any of the three chains, is the pathogenic mechanism responsible for the disease. This line of mice, humanized for the alpha3(IV) collagen chain, will also provide a valuable model for studying the pathogenesis of Goodpasture syndrome, an autoimmune disease caused by antibodies against this chain.

No abstract

The nail-patella syndrome (NPS) is characterized by nail and bone abnormalities, associated with glomerular involvement in approximately 40% of patients. Typical glomerular changes consist of fibrillar material in the irregularly thickened glomerular basement membrane. NPS is inherited as an autosomal dominant trait and caused by heterozygous loss of function mutations in LMX1B, a member of the LIM homeodomain protein family. Mice with homozygous inactivation of the gene exhibit nail and skeletal defects, similar to those observed in patients, associated with glomerular abnormalities. Strong reduction in the glomerular expression of the alpha3 and alpha4 chains of type IV collagen, and of podocin and CD2AP, two podocyte proteins critical for glomerular function, has been observed in Lmx1b null mice. The expression of these proteins appeared to be regulated by Lmx1b. To determine whether these changes in podocyte gene expression are involved in the development of NPS nephropathy, using immunohistological techniques, we analyzed the podocyte phenotype and the renal distribution of type IV collagen chains in the kidneys of seven NPS patients with severe glomerular disease. We also examined the nature of the fibrillar material present within the glomerular extracellular matrix. The glomerular basement membrane fibrillar material was specifically labeled with anti-type III collagen antibodies, suggesting a possible regulation of type III collagen expression by LMX1B. The expression of the alpha3 and alpha4 chains of type IV collagen, and of podocin and CD2AP, was found to be normal in the seven patients. These findings indicate that heterozygous mutations of LMX1B do not appear to dramatically affect the expression of type IV collagen chains, podocin, or CD2AP in NPS patients.

No abstract

The kidney distribution of angiotensin-I converting enzyme (ACE) was studied in 14 fetuses (11 to 30 weeks old) and 7 children (2 days to 13 years old) by immunohistochemistry using specific antibodies to human kidney ACE. Immunohistochemical techniques included indirect immunofluorescence on cryostat sections of frozen tissue, immunoperoxidase and immunofluorescence of fixed tissue embedded in Paraplast, and immunoelectron microscopy. The ACE distribution in the fetal kidneys was independent of the age of the fetus. ACE was detected in two locations: 1) on the basolateral membranes and primary apical microvilli of epithelial cells from early differentiating proximal tubules; the labeling was intense in brush borders of fully developed proximal tubules; and 2) on glomerular endothelial cells; cells were lined by reaction product as soon as capillaries invaded the inferior cleft of the S-shaped body. Tubular ACE distribution was identical in the postnatal kidneys. The staining of the glomerular endothelium was extremely inconstant. The presence of ACE in proximal tubular cells and glomerular endothelial cells at the beginning of nephron differentiation may indicate that it is involved in the development of nephron function and renal hemodynamic.