Human Kidney Podocytes play a crucial role in renal function. Podocytes are epithelial cells that cover the outer surfaces of glomerular capillaries, making up the epithelial lining of Bowman’s capsule. This capsule filters the blood, retaining large molecules such as proteins while smaller molecules; such as water, salts, and sugars are filtered as the first step in the formation of urine. Vesicular transport is one of the most relevant processes in this polarized cell type. Its injury is the cause of various forms of kidney disease: the extent of this injury and its reversibility have important implications for treatment and prognosis. Podocytes play a key role in the prevention of proteinuria in the healthy situation. They are important targets of injury in a variety of renal diseases and are important determinants of outcome.

Human Kidney Podocytes in culture provide a useful in vitro model for studying renal disease. They are also useful tools to stablish in vitro disease models for High Throughput and High Content Screening.