Kidney diseases, including chronic kidney disease (CKD), glomerulonephritis, nephrotic syndrome, and diabetic nephropathy, continue to represent a significant global health burden. Understanding the cellular mechanisms underlying renal dysfunction is essential for the development of new diagnostics, therapies, and regenerative strategies.
Researchers increasingly rely on primary kidney cells to model human kidney function more accurately than immortalized lines. These cells provide physiologically relevant insights into renal inflammation, fibrosis, glomerular injury, tubular dysfunction, and autoimmune-related renal disorders.
What Are Primary Kidney Cells?
Primary kidney cells are directly isolated from human or animal renal tissue—either cortex, medulla, or glomeruli—and include specialized epithelial, endothelial, mesangial, and immune cells. These cells retain the phenotype and functional characteristics of in vivo renal cells, making them highly valuable in translational and preclinical research.
Key Primary Cells Used in Kidney Disease Research
|
Cell Type |
Function in Kidney Pathophysiology |
|
|---|---|---|
|
Proximal Tubular Epithelial Cells (PTECs) |
Central to reabsorption, drug transport, and injury response; often used in nephrotoxicity assays. |
|
|
Glomerular Endothelial Cells |
Maintain glomerular filtration barrier; involved in microvascular dysfunction in CKD and lupus nephritis. | |
|
Podocytes |
Key filtration cells; their loss or dysfunction contributes to proteinuria and glomerulosclerosis. | |
|
Mesangial Cells |
Regulate glomerular blood flow and matrix; implicated in IgA nephropathy and lupus nephritis. | |
|
Collecting Duct Epithelial Cells |
Involved in water/electrolyte balance; altered in tubular disorders and polycystic kidney disease. | |
|
Renal Fibroblasts / Myofibroblasts |
Mediate fibrosis and ECM deposition during chronic kidney injury. | |
|
Renal Pericytes |
Regulate capillary function and contribute to fibrogenesis in chronic kidney injury. | |
|
Resident Macrophages & Monocytes |
Involved in inflammation, repair, and progression of kidney disease. | |
|
Immune Cells in Renal Tissue |
T cells, B cells, dendritic cells—play a major role in autoimmune and inflammatory nephropathies. |