Nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy: a non-invasive probe of kidney metabolism and function.

Major advances in nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopic methods and technology have led to the increased use of this technique to study kidney metabolism and function. These studies include: (1) the identification of organic osmolytes in the renal medulla and their role as potential markers of medullary development and damage; (2) changes in renal epithelial cell organic solute transport, such as autosomal dominant polycystic kidney disease, and (3) the biochemical heterogeneity of the nephron and identification of markers of site-specific renal damage in experimental animals and man. The present review summarises these data with the aim of demonstrating how NMR can be used as an indirect, and non-invasive probe of homeostatic mechanisms in vivo and in vitro.