Transport of uremic toxins through conventional hemodialysis membranes.

Human mononuclear phagocytes cultured in vitro were tested after preincubation with uremic plasma dialyzed in vitro and the effects of pre and post hemodialysis plasma were compared with the effect of dialyzates equilibrated with uremic plasma in vivo. Factors in uremic blood plasma inhibiting phagocytosis of Candida albicans could not be removed by means of conventional hemodialysis with cuprophan (CPN) or polyacrylonitrile (PAN) membranes. Hemofiltrates of uremic blood plasma produced by PAN membranes caused a significant inhibition of phagocytes in our test system while CPN hemofiltrates did not.