Proteomic analysis of laser-microdissected murine fetal glomeruli

Alteration of fetal kidney morphogenesis in diabetic pregnancies is poorly described, especially changes in the extracellular matrix (ECM) and glomerular basement membrane (GBM) during glomerulogenesis. Addressing the ECM proteome, or matrisome, in mouse fetal glomeruli in a healthy and diabetic environment will improve understanding about the association between ECM and GBM changes in the glomerulus as potential reprogramming mechanisms for glomerular dysfunction in infants of mothers with diabetes. This project aimed to define the matrisome and BM composition in the maturing murine fetal glomeruli collected from normal and diabetic mothers. For this, we used laser microdissection microscopy to isolate maturing glomeruli from cryosections, and analyse by label-free tandem mass spectrometry to test the hypothesis that maternal diabetes influences ECM and GBM composition, assembly and function.