Structural and Architectural Patterns of Ascending Vasa Recta between the Inner and Outer Medullary Border of the Munich-wistar Rat Kidney

The goal of the following research project was to perform a three-dimensional reconstruction of selected CDs and associated AVR as they ascend through the IM/OM border, and determine whether AVR in this region coalesce to form giant vascular bundles, or whether they do so in a more dispersed pattern, interacting with components of the interbundle regions. The previously accepted model of vascular architecture in this region suggests that as AVR ascend through the IM/OM border, they coalesce to form dense vascular bundles (Figure 5, Pallone). Previous research performed in this lab, along with current three-dimensional reconstructions suggest that AVR are not confined to dense vascular bundles as they enter the OM. Instead, we hypothesize that as intracluster AVR ascend through the region of interest, they do so in a more dispersed pattern throughout the inner stripe of the OM. Analysis of the following experiment utilized methods including immunohistochemical preparation of the tissue samples, epifluorescent microscopy, and three-dimensional reconstructions of AVR through the region of interest. The three-dimensional reconstruction of three CDs, and fiveassociated AVR resulted in two AVR joining the vascular bundle, while the other three were found to ascend through the interbundle regions of the OM.