The effect of puromycin on subepithelial deposits induced by antibodies directed against tubular antigens: a quantitative study*

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Abstract
The mechanism of the GN [glomerulonephritis] induced by the i.v. injection of antibodies directed against renal tubular epithelial antigens (RTE) was studied by the use of antibody specifically purified by affinity chromatography. With this reagent RTE antigens were demonstrated on frozen sections of glomeruli and on glomerular cells in culture. The antibodies were radiolabeled, and using paired label techniques glomerular binding could be measured in vivo. In normal rats, approximately 4% of the antibody injected was specifically bound in the glomeruli. Binding was not detectable on proximal tubular brush borders. In rats treated with 100 mg/kg of aminonucleoside of puromycin, a substance known to induce alterations of glomerular epithelial cells, glomerular binding was selectively decreased. Immune deposits in passive Heyman nephritis are apparently formed mainly in situ and local alteration of the glomerulus can markedly influence deposit formation.