Dr. Michael Brad Strader, a researcher from National Institutes of Health (NIH) visits the University of Puerto Rico Medical Sciences Campus
Development of Water Transport in the Collecting
Duct
On Wednesday, March 18, 1998, Dr. Melvin A. Bonilla-Feliz, Assistant Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Texas Medical School presented a seminar on the development of water transport in the collecting duct. In his seminar, Dr. Bonilla reported that the immature kidney of both rats and newborns is characterized by a reduced ability to concentrate the urine. This concentrating defect appears to be the result of a diminished responsiveness of the immature collecting duct to vasopressin. His research studies have also demonstrated that the defect in AVP-stimulated cAMP production in the immature cortical collecting duct is mediated by prostaglandins, probably through an increased expression of the EP3 receptor. His most recent data reveal that the expression of aquaporin-2, a water transport channel stimulated by ADH, and that of the vasopressin-regulated urea transporter are also altered in the immature kidney and may also contribute to the concentration defect observed in early postnatal life. The clinical implications of Dr. Bonilla's observations were extensively discussed by the clinical investigators and physicians who attended his presentation.
Dr. Bonilla's research is supported by an American Heart Association, Minority Scientist Development Award and a National Kidney Foundation, Clinical Scientist Award.
