LOOP OF HENLE

O bj ec ti ve s
Explain the Concept of Loop of Henle in
general
Explain the Anatomy of Loop of Henle
Explain the Functions of the Loop of Henle in
relation to its material’s permeability
Applied Physiology
 INTRODUCTION
The human kidney is made up of about a million nephrons, the filtering units of this
complex and highly vascular organ. Each nephron is composed of a highly coiled
tubule, one end of which forms a cup-shaped structure.
Inside this cup and forming a network around its walls, is a tuft of capillaries called a
glomerulus, with a special fenestrated endothelium
Each glomerulus filters out water and solutes from the blood passing through it into
the surrounding space, which is the cavity between the two walls of the cup. This
part is wholly within the renal cortex.
The next part of the tubule is highly coiled (the proximal convoluted tubule) and
empties into a U-shaped structure, carrying the filtered fluid deep down into the
medulla and then back again into the cortex. This part of the nephron is called the
Loop of Henle.
Its main function is to reabsorb water and sodium chloride from the filtrate. This
conserves water for the organism, producing highly concentrated urine.
H
 THE CONCEPT AND
A N AT O M Y O F T H E L O O P O F
HENLE
 The loop of Henle is the U-shaped part of the nephron which has both
descending part and ascending part.

 It starts as the continuation of the straight part of PCT, then narrows down to
form the thin descending limb and thin ascending followed by the thick
ascending limb

 Finally terminates as the thick straight part of DCT leaving the medulla to the
renal cortex
 Loop of Henle is found in both
Cortical Nephron and
Juxtamedullar Nephron, the
Juxtamedullary Nephron’s loop of
Henle being longer than the
former, which extends deeper into
the medulla.
The Loop of Henle has a hairpin configuration with a thin
descending limb and both, a thin and thick ascending limb (TAL). 
The thin descending and ascending segments have thin,
squamous epithelial membranes with minimal metabolic activity.
The TAL has cuboidal epithelial membranes and is quite
metabolically active.
Ion transport along the nephron is essential for the reabsorption
of sodium and water, maintenance of plasma volume, blood
pressure, and production of urine. The Loop of Henle contributes
to the absorption of approximately 25% of filtered sodium and can
be targeted by diuretic therapy.
Components of Loop of Henle

-Loop of Henle has three important functional parts

which are:

(i)Descending limb; thin

(ii)Hairpin bend, and;

(iii)Ascending limb, that has both thin part then thick

part
Descending Part of Loop of Henle
• Begins as the continuation of PCT
• Has two histologically different parts;thick and thin descending
parts of loop of henle
• Thick descending loop of henle is short and has brush-bordered
cuboidal epithelial cells
• Thin descending loop of henle is longer and has squamous
epithelial cells without brush border.
Hairpin Bend
• It is the only horizontal part of loop of henle
• It begins as thin descending part and terminates as the thin
ascending part
• has squamous epithelial cells without brush border.
Ascending loop of Henle
• It has two histologically different parts; a thin ascending part and
a thick ascending part
• The thin ascending part has squamous epithelial cells without a
brush border while thick ascending part is lined by cuboidal
epithelial cells without a brush border
• Ascending loop of Henle terminates into the cortex, and as it
does so it runs between afferent and efferent arterioles forming
Macula densa, a functionally important component of the
tubuloglomerular feedback mechanism
THINGS TO NOTICE:
i.Difference between Macula densa cells of ALH and the
rest of the cells in the loop.
 -specialized sensory cells, stimulated by Chloride ions
Conc and BP variation
 -The cells have Apical nuclei, Basal dictyosomes, and
well-defined channels

ii.Unique features of the granular cells(tunica media)

from other smooth muscle cells of the Afferent arteriole.
 -They have a secretory phenotype
 -More round nuclei,Golgi complexes, ER, and granules
with protease RENIN (Hint: Renin is an enzyme and not
a hormone)
FUNCTION

Thin Descending Limb

The  descending limb is highly permeable to water, with reabsorption
occurring passively via aquaporin-1 (AQP1) channels. Small amounts
of urea, sodium (Na+) and other ions are also reabsorbed. As mentioned
above, water reabsorption is driven by the counter-current multiplier
system set up by the active reabsorption of sodium in the Thick Ascending
Limb.
 Thin Ascending Limb

The thin ascending limb is impermeable to water, due to it having no aquaporin

channels. Na+ reabsorption occurs passively through epithelial Na+ (eNaC)
channels   and Chloride (Cl–) ions are reabsorbed in the thin ascending limb
through Cl– channels. There is some paracellular movement of Na+ and
Cl– because of the difference in osmolarity between the tubule and the
interstitium.
THICK ASCENDING LIMB

• The primary site of sodium reabsorption in the Loop of Henle is the thick
ascending limb (TAL). The TAL is impermeable to water. Sodium reabsorption is
active – the driver is the Na+/K+ ATPase on the basolateral membrane which
actively pumps 3 Na+ ions out of the cell and 2 potassium (K+) ions into the cell. So
by creating a low intracellular concentration of sodium, the inside of the cell
becomes negatively charged, creating an electrochemical gradient.

• Sodium then moves into the cell (from the tubular lumen) down the electrical and
chemical gradient, through the NKCC2 transporter on the apical membrane This
transporter moves one Na+ ion, one K+ ion and two Cl– ions across the apical
membrane.
.
 Potassium ions are transported back into the tubule by renal outer medullary
potassium (ROMK) channels on the apical membrane to prevent toxic build up
within the cell. Chloride ions are transported into the tissue fluid via CIC-KB
channels

The overall effects of this process are:

 Removal of Na+ whilst retaining water in the tubules – this leads to a hypotonic
solution arriving at the DCT.
 Pumping Na+ into the interstitial space – this contributes to a hyperosmotic
environment in the kidney medulla
 There is also some paracellular reabsorption of magnesium, calcium, sodium and
potassium.
 MECHANISM OF
SODIUM,CHLORIDE AND
P O TA S S I U M T R A N S P O R T I N TA L H
The mechanism of ions transport in TALH can be viewed in two areas:
i.Transport across basal membrane
ii.Transport across luminal membrane

Transport across the basal membrane

-It is principally mediated by sodium-potassium ATPase pump in the
epithelial cell basal lateral membranes.
-This process maintains low intracellular sodium concentration. This low
intracellular concentration favors the good functioning of carrier protein
to transport ions from the lumen into the cell.
Transport across luminal membrane
-This transport the ions from tubular
lumen into tubular cells
-Movement of sodium across this
membrane is mediated basically by a
1-sodium,2-chloride,1-potassium co-
transpoter(carrier protein).
-This is made possible due to the low
concentration of the ions in the cell
caused by actively removal of the ions
to the interstitial tissues.
-Uniquely the carrier protein uses
potential energy released by downhill
diffusion of the sodium into the cell to
drive the reabsorption process.
 There is also secretion of hydrogen ions in the tubular lumen which is
mediated through the sodium-hydrogen counter-transport mechanism.

 Paracellular reabsorption of magnesium, calcium,sodium, and

potassium in the luminal cell membrane is made possible due to a
higher positive charge in the lumen than in the interstitial tissues
 COUNTER-CURRENT
M U LT I P L I C AT I O N
As the thick ascending limb is
impermeable to water, the interstitium
becomes concentrated with ions,
increasing its osmolarity. This drives
water reabsorption from the
descending limb as water moves from
areas of low osmolarity to areas of high
osmolarity. This system is known
as counter-current multiplication and it
allows the kidneys to reabsorb
around 99% of filtered water
 APPLIED PHYSIOLOGY
Bartter Syndrome
Bartter syndrome is a group of autosomal recessive conditions characterized
by genetic mutations in the genes coding for the NKCC2 transporter, apical
potassium channel, or basolateral chloride ion channel. The genetic defect
of carrier protein of TALH.
There is no sodium and chloride reabsorption, hence no water reabsorption.

-It is characterized by polyuria and sodium loss.

Clinical features of Bartter Syndrome include:

 hyponatremia
 hypokalemia
 metabolic alkalosis
Loop Diuretics.
Loop diuretics get their name from the fact that they act on the Loop of Henle. They
work by inhibiting NKCC2 transporters in the thick ascending limb, stopping sodium,
potassium, and chloride reabsorption. Less sodium reabsorption reduces the
concentration of the renal medulla, decreasing water reabsorption in the DCT and
CD. This leads to increased excretion of sodium in the urine and significant diuresis,
reducing plasma volume.
Thus, loop diuretics such as furosemide are usually used to treat hypervolemia –
Heart or Liver failure.

An important side-effect of loop diuretics is hypokalaemia. This is because increasing

sodium delivery to the DCT also increases potassium excretion.
 EN QU I RI E S ?

QN: Do people in the Subsaharan Desert

have the loop of Henle with the same
length as people in Tropical regions?
SUMMARY
THANK YOU