glomerular mesangial cell
Intraglomerular mesangial cells are specialized pericytes located among the glomerular capillaries within a renal corpuscle of a kidney. [ http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intraglomerular_mesangial_cell ]
Synonyms: intraglomerular mesangial cell
Term info
- KUPO:0001032
human_reference_atlas
Like smooth muscle, a glomerular mesangial cell is contractile and possesses the filaments actin and myosin. The contractile mechanism is also similar to that of smooth muscle, with Ca2+/calmodulin-activated myosin light-chain kinase instigating myosin-actin cross-bridge cycling. Mesangial cell phagocytosis of apoptotic neutrophils involves a novel CD36-independent, alpha(v)beta3/TSP-mediated mechanism that is uncoupled from chemokine secretion, emphasizing the injury-limiting potential of mesangial cell phagocytosis of apoptotic cells.
http://purl.obolibrary.org/obo/NCBITaxon_9606