Accelerated Reabsorption in the Proximal Tubule Produced by Volume Depletion

The renal response to chronic depletion of extracellular volume was examined using the techniques of micropuncture. Depletion of salt and water was produced by administration of furosemide to rats maintained on a sodium-free diet. There was a marked fall in body weight, plasma volume, and glomerular filtration rate. The intrinsic reabsorptive capacity of the proximal tubule, measured by the split-droplet technique, was greatly enhanced. The acceleration of proximal fluid reabsorption could not be accounted for by changes in filtration rate, tubular geometry, or aldosterone secretion. The half-time of droplet reabsorption in the distal tubule was not altered by sodium depletion. An increase in the reabsorption of fluid in the proximal tubule, as demonstrated directly in the present experiments, provides an explanation for a variety of clinical phenomena associated with volume depletion.