TY - JOUR A1 - , T1 - Apoptosis and mitosis during metanephrogenesis and in congenital renal disease JO - Eur. J. Anat. SN - 1136-4890 Y1 - 2007 VL - 11 SP - 105 EP - 110 UR - http://www.eurjanat.com/web/paper.php?id=07020105 KW - propidium iodide KW - animal experiment KW - animal tissue KW - apoptosis KW - article KW - cell compartmentalization KW - confocal microscopy KW - controlled study KW - embryo KW - immunohistochemistry KW - kidney disease KW - mitosis KW - mitosis index KW - mouse KW - nonhuman KW - stem cell KW - upregulation N2 - Apoptosis and mitosis are carefully balanced to allow metanephrogenesis to occur at an exponential rate. Congenital renal abnormalities can occur due to alterations in this fine balance. It has been suggested previously that the nephrogenic zone has a mitotic index of 50% with an equivalent apoptotic index. Our study therefore evaluated the rates of apoptosis and mitosis in the developing murine metanephros. Embryonic murine kidneys (E12.5-E16.5) were stained with propidium iodide, and confocal microscopy was used to count the number of apoptotic and mitotic cells. The pyknotic index and mitotic index were calculated for each compartment of the developing metanephros. The mitotic index in the cortex was 3.4 times greater than the pyknotic index. Apoptosis occurred uniformly throughout the developing kidney, at a lower rate than previously thought. The mitotic index was found to increase in each compartment with age, except in the stem cell compartment, where it decreased. In sum, apoptosis plays a less significant role in normal metanephrogenesis than is currently believed. However, we suggest that apoptosis may be upregulated during abnormal metanephrogenesis, leading to the development of congenital renal abnormalities. ER -