Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40903539›Full record

ArticleNpj imaging2025

Mapping the arterial vascular network in an intact human kidney using hierarchical phase-contrast tomography.

Shahrokh Rahmani, Daniyal J Jafree, Peter D Lee, Paul Tafforeau, Joseph Brunet, Sonal Nandanwar, Yang Zhou, Joseph Jacob, Alexandre Bellier, Maximilian Ackermann and 4 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Npj imaging, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
7citing papers in PubMed, 2 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

7 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Pooled it
  3. Article
  4. Article
  5. The Human Organ Atlas.Science advances · 2026
    Article
  6. Article
  7. The Human Organ Atlas.bioRxiv : the preprint server for biology · 2025
    Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

14 authors.

Shahrokh RahmaniDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, University College London, London, UK.
Daniyal J JafreeDevelopmental Biology and Cancer Research & Teaching Department, UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, University College London, London, UK.
Peter D LeeDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, University College London, London, UK.
Paul TafforeauEuropean Synchrotron Radiation Facility, Grenoble, France.
Joseph BrunetDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, University College London, London, UK.
Sonal NandanwarDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, University College London, London, UK.
Yang ZhouDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, University College London, London, UK.
Joseph JacobSatsuma Lab, Centre for Medical Image Computing, UCL, London, UK.
Alexandre BellierDepartment of Anatomy (LADAF), Grenoble Alpes University, Grenoble, France.
Maximilian AckermannInstitute of Anatomy, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz, Mainz, Germany.
Danny D JonigkInstitute of Pathology, RWTH Aachen Medical University, Aachen, Germany.
Rebecca J ShipleyDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, University College London, London, UK.
David A LongDevelopmental Biology and Cancer Research & Teaching Department, UCL Great Ormond Street Institute of Child Health, University College London, London, UK.
Claire L WalshDepartment of Mechanical Engineering, University College London, London, UK. c.walsh.11@ucl.ac.uk.

Funding

Chan Zuckerberg Initiative CZIF2021-006424Chan Zuckerberg Initiative DAF2020-225394 and 2022-316777MRC MR/R025673/1Royal Academy of Engineering CiET1819-10Wellcome Trust 220895Wellcome Trust 220895/Z/20/Z
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The architecture of kidney vasculature is essential the organ's specialised functions, yet is challenging to structurally map in an intact human organ. Here, we combined hierarchical phase-contrast tomography (HiP-CT) with topology network analysis to enable quantitative assessment of the intact human kidney vasculature, from the renal artery to interlobular arteries. Comparison with kidney vascular maps described for rodents revealed similar topologies to human, but human kidney vasculature possessed a significantly sharper decrease in radius from hilum to cortex, deviating from theoretically optimal flow resistance for smaller vessels. Structural differences in kidney hilar, medullary and cortical vasculature reflected unique functional adaptations of each zone. This work represents the first time the arterial vasculature of an intact human kidney has been mapped beyond segmental arteries, potentiating novel computational models of kidney vascular flow in humans. Our analyses have implications for understanding how blood vessel structure collectively scales to facilitate specialised functions in human organs.

Identifiers

PMID40903539
PMCPMC12408821

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.