Expression of Nestin in the Developing Rat Kidney

Lee, Jung Eun; Kim, Jin; Cha, Jung Ho

Abstract

Nestin is abundantly expressed in stem cells of the developmental stage of both central nervous system and some non-neuronal organs. The aim of this study was to examine the expression of nestin in the developing rat kidney. Kidneys from 16-(F16), 18- and 20-day-old fetuses, 1-, 3-, 7-, 14-, and 21-day-old pups (P21) and adult were preserved and processed for immunohistochemistry. The nestin was already expressed at all areas of kidney from F16, especially strong in nephrogenic zone. Throughout the development, nestin immunoreactivity was exclusively localized in both glomerulus and interstitium, not in renal tubules. In the vesicle and the S-shaped body stages of the glomerulogenesis, nestin was negative. In the capillary loop stage, the immature podocytes became positive for nestin. Aggregated mesenchymal cells at the root of immature glomeruli were nestin-positive, and then lost the immunoreactivity progressively. In the maturing stage, nestin was expressed only in podocytes. In the renal interstitium except renal papilla, nestin was positive and colocalized with vimentin in almost all the interstitial cells at the prenatal age except both ED-1-positive macrophages and in MHC class II-positive dendritic cells. After birth, the number of nestin-positive cells in the interstitium was decreased, and at P21 pattern of nestin expression in the interstitium was similar with that of adult kidney. In the renal papilla, lipid-laden cells show nestin-negative but vimentin-positive.