Effects of dietary interventions on glomerular pathophysiology

Abstract

Numerous dietary interventions have been utilized to modify the course of and further elucidate the pathophysiological processes involved in experimental progressive glomerulopathy. Alterations in dietary constituents can affect the glomerular capillary hemodynamic parameters, the permselectivity features of the filtration apparatus, as well as the morphology and function of resident glomerular cells and influxing bone marrow-derived monocytes. The three dietary modifications examined in this review are protein restriction, dietary cholesterol supplementation, and essential fatty acid deficiency. These maneuvers have been chosen from the myriad dietary interventions in the experimental and clinical literature and are not meant to be all inclusive. The implementation of these three dietary modifications, in experimental models of glomerular disease, amply demonstrate the concept of a stratified alteration in glomerular structure and function. Since perturbed glomerular pathobiology, involving the above-mentioned structures and cell types, is believed to contribute to progressive glomerulopathy, a review of these seemingly diverse, yet perhaps, interrelated responses to dietary modifications will only aid us in understanding this process.