Establishing a morphological mechanism of hematuria in IgA nephropathy. -Aiming to Promote Precise and Specific Therapeutic Interventions-

2023 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 21K08264
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Review Section: Basic Section 53040:Nephrology-related
• Research Institution: Juntendo University
• Principal Investigator: Takagi Miyuki 順天堂大学, 医学部, 特任助教 (80599895)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): 鈴木 祐介 順天堂大学, 大学院医学研究科, 教授 (70372935) ; 角田 宗一郎 順天堂大学, 大学院医学研究科, 准教授 (80551209)
• Project Period (FY): 2021-04-01 – 2024-03-31
• Keywords: 血尿 / IgA腎症 / Array Tomography法

Outline of Final Research Achievements

In this study, we aimed to elucidate the mechanism of hematuria in IgA nephropathy through ultrastructural analysis using the FIB-SEM method. Initially, we observed a mouse model of nephritis. However, detecting stable hematuria proved to be more challenging than anticipated. Additionally, because the FIB-SEM method makes it difficult to observe the entire glomerulus, we decided to use renal biopsy tissue from human IgA nephropathy for further analysis.
We observed the human renal biopsy tissue using the Array Tomography (AT) method, which offers a broader range of observation than the FIB-SEM method. This allowed us not only to observe the human renal tissue more comprehensively but also to establish a reliable method for doing so with the AT technique.
By examining human IgA nephropathy renal tissues, particularly in cases with gross hematuria, we frequently identified specific pathological findings that may be morphological abnormalities resulting in hematuria.

Free Research Field

腎臓内科学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

今回の研究成果として、ヒト腎生検組織の3次元構造解析にAT法の利用を確立することができ、今後効率的にヒト腎生検組織観察が可能となったと考えられる。さらにはヒトＩｇＡ腎症腎組織（特に肉眼的血尿を認めた症例を抽出して）の観察結果から、糸球体係蹄壁における血尿の原因となる三次元的な構造の特定、係蹄壁構造異常による血尿発症機序の解明に近づくことができたと考えられる。