The heterogeneous mononuclear phagocyte system of the kidney

The kidney has a diverse repertoire of cells that make up the mononuclear phagocyte system (MPS). Wu et al. identify a population of CD8αα+CD11c+MHC-II+ blood precursors that display dendritic cell-like characteristics in the glomeruli. These cells show increased recruitment in a rat anti-glomerular basement membrane glomerulonephritis model and were able to attenuate disease. This study highlights the importance of the MPS in kidney disease and the need to better understand it to develop immunotherapeutics translatable to the renal patient.