Methods in Pharmacology Volume 4a Renal Pharmacology

In the years since Homer Smith did his pioneering work in renal physiology, interest in the kidney has grown steadily and robustly. That this wondrously designed machine-in addition to its filtering, secreting, and reabsorptive functions-can serve as an important endocrine organ has made it the investiga- tive concern of researchers from a variety of disciplines. Not surprisingly in this era of molecular biology, attempts have been made to understand the orderly functions of the kidney in biochemical and molecular terms, and this has led to the steady entry of renal physiologists and pharmacologists into these areas. Because renal physiology is the foundation on which renal pharmacology is based, this volume has been directed toward describing and interpreting the interrelationships of these two disciplines and their relation to the biochemistry and biophysics of the kidney. Accordingly, extensive critical discussions of the current knowledge of mechanisms affected by pharmacological agents, in addition to descriptions of methods, have been included herein. Not acciden- tally, stress is placed on the physiological, pharmacological, and biochemical effect of diuretics. In a specific sense the drugs in this group are true "renal drugs." The scope of the material included on diuretics is wide enough that this book should be of value to almost anyone involved in their use, from the clinician to the cell biologist.