Study on immunopathogenesis of minimal change nephropathy. Effects of mitogens activated lymphocytes on glomerular polyanions in vitro.

Rat spleen lymphocytes (RSL) stimulated by mitogens in vitro were cultured on cryostat sections of rat kidney. After 36 hours glomerular polyanions (GPA) were stained with colloidal iron (CI). The results showed that the RSL stimulated with Con A were able to reduce GPA stainability as that treated with neuraminidase solution, and the effect was dose-dependent on Con A, whereas the supernatant of lymphocytes induced with Con A and the lymphocytes induced with PHA were not able to reduce GPA stainability. The result is in favor of the recent concept that the pathogenesis of MCN is associated with the loss of GPA which results from the dysfunction of the subpopulation of T lymphocytes.