The following is a summary of “Linking basement membrane and slit diaphragm in drosophila nephrocytes,” published in the May 2024 issue of Nephrology by Leroy et al.
The collaboration between the glomerular basement membrane and slit diaphragm is essential in the filtration barrier, yet it is not well studied.
Researchers conducted a retrospective study to understand the correlation between the structures in podocyte-like nephrocytes in drosophila harbor, which have both structures acting as models.
They used RNAi to silence basement membrane components and matrix receptors in nephrocytes. Slit diaphragms were studied with immunofluorescence and quantified automatically. Tracer endocytosis measured functional outcomes.
The results showed that immunofluorescence had fewer slit diaphragms when laminin and collagen IV were reduced, alongside lower fly nephrin expression and shallower membrane invaginations. Tracer studies revealed the basement membrane’s role in the nephrocyte filtration barrier. Acute enzymatic disruption through collagenase quickly disrupted slit diaphragm localization and integration, unaffected by cell death—loss of matrix-interacting receptors, particularly integrins mys and mew, mimicked basement membrane disruption. Integrins and nephrin worked together at the slit diaphragm, supported genetically and physically in human integrin α3.
Investigators concluded that in drosophila nephrocytes, the glomerular basement membrane model demonstrated how matrix receptors play a crucial role in ensuring the proper positioning of the slit diaphragm and the overall architecture of the filtration barrier.
Source: journals.lww.com/jasn/abstract/9900/linking_basement_membrane_and_slit_diaphragm_in.329.aspx