The granular peripolar cell of the human glomerulus: a new component of the juxtaglomerular apparatus?

Using serial sections of resin-embedded tissue we found granular peripolar cells in six human kidneys. They were present in 3% to 28% of the glomeruli. Using an immunoperoxidase staining technique and an antibody to pure human renin we showed that the human peripolar cell contains no immunostainable renin. The number of peripolar cells correlated with the number of juxtaglomerular apparatus (JGAs) with renin-containing cells; their distribution within the renal cortex was similar, both being found predominantly in glomeruli in the superficial cortex. There was a close anatomical relationship between the peripolar cells and the renin containing cells in individual JGAs. These findings suggest the possibility of a functional relationship between the peripolar cell and the other components of the juxtaglomerular apparatus.