Antithrombotic activity of glomerular adenosine diphosphatase in the glomerular basement membrane of the rat kidney.

Activity of nucleoside polyphosphatases (including adenosine diphosphatase [ADPase]) in the glomerular basement membrane (GBM) of the rat kidney can be demonstrated in situ by using cytochemical methods at the ultrastructural level. To study the possible influence of glomerular ADPase activity on experimentally induced intraglomerular platelet aggregation, we carried out alternate perfusion experiments with human platelets and adenosine diphosphate (ADP) solution in rat kidneys ex vivo. This was done in rats with reduced glomerular phosphatase activity induced by either an intravenous injection of doxorubicin (8.5 mg/kg body weight) or local x-irradiation (2000 rads) as well as in rats with normal glomerular enzyme activity, that is, untreated rats or rats injected intravenously with aminonucleoside of puromycin (PAN) (15 mg/kg body weight). It is shown that in kidneys of both doxorubicin-treated and x-irradiated rats intraglomerular platelet aggregation occurs in approximately 50% of the glomeruli, whereas in PAN-treated or control rats no platelet aggregation could be detected by light microscopy. Activated platelets (by electron microscopy) and beta-thromboglobulin or platelet factor 4 (immunofluorescence microscopy) could be detected with appropriate fluorescinated antibodies along the GBM exclusively in kidneys with reduced ADPase activity caused by doxorubicin or x-irradiation treatment. Because glomerular ADPase activity in contrast to other putative antithrombotic molecules in the GBM, that is, heparan sulfate proteoglycans, is clearly affected by doxorubicin or x-irradiation treatment, it is suggested that the activity of glomerular ADPase may reflect an important antithrombotic principle in the GBM of the rat kidney.