Background

Nephrotoxic serum nephritis is the workhorse model of rapidly progressive glomerulonephritis. A heterologous antibody raised against glomerular basement membrane binds the GBM within minutes of injection, and the host's own immune response to that foreign IgG drives the autologous phase — proteinuria, glomerular crescents, and in susceptible strains progression to glomerulosclerosis and interstitial fibrosis. It reproduces the histology of human crescentic glomerulonephritis and Goodpasture disease more closely than any other inducible model, which is why it remains the standard platform for testing anti-inflammatory and anti-fibrotic candidates in kidney disease.

The model lives or dies on the antiserum. Disease severity is dose-dependent and lot-dependent, so the same protocol run with a different lot can produce anything from transient proteinuria to lethal renal failure. That is why every published protocol begins with a dose-response titration, and why a laboratory running a multi-arm study wants enough material from a single lot to cover the whole experiment.

BF001AGBM is supplied at 25 mL — enough for at least 25 rats at 175–200 g — so a full study arm, its controls and its repeats come from one lot.

Description

Biofargo BF001AGBM is a sheep antiserum raised against isolated rat glomerular basement membrane, supplied for the induction of passive anti-GBM nephritis and immune-mediated glomerulonephritis in rats.

The serum is supplied as 25 mL in 0.02 M phosphate-buffered saline at pH 7.3, heat-treated at 56 °C for 30 minutes. One bottle contains sufficient antibody to induce passive anti-GBM nephritis in at least 25 rats weighing 175–200 g when used at the recommended dose of 0.4–0.5 mL per 100 g body weight.

The resulting model is associated with mesangial proliferation, inflammatory cell vasculitis, glomerulosclerosis and renal fibrosis. Because antiserum lots, rat sources and experimental endpoints vary, a dose-response study should be run to establish the desired disease severity for each lot before committing a full cohort.

BF001AGBM replaces the previous sheep anti-whole-rat-glomeruli serum. Both target rat GBM and produce the same type of disease model. The product has not been validated or recommended for use in mice. Bulk quantities are available.

Research Use Only. Not for use in diagnostic, therapeutic, food, household or clinical procedures. All animal work must be approved by the relevant institutional animal care and use committee.

Specifications

Parameter	Specification
Product Name	Sheep Anti-Rat Isolated Glomerular Basement Membrane Serum
Alternative Names	Sheep anti-rat anti-GBM serum; nephrotoxic serum (NTS)
Catalog Number	BF001AGBM
Product Type	Nephrotoxic antiserum
Host Species	Sheep
Target Species	Rat
Immunogen	Isolated rat glomerular basement membrane
Research Model	Passive anti-GBM nephritis; immune-mediated glomerulonephritis
Form	Liquid serum
Volume	25 mL
Buffer	0.02 M phosphate-buffered saline
pH	7.3
Heat Treatment	56 °C for 30 minutes
Recommended Dose	0.4–0.5 mL per 100 g body weight
Route	Intravenous (tail vein), delivered slowly
Animal Coverage	At least 25 rats at 175–200 g per bottle, at the stated dose
Recommended Strain	Sprague-Dawley (other strains not tested in the product data)
Mouse Use	Not validated or recommended
Storage	−20 °C or below; avoid repeated freeze-thaw cycles
Bulk Quantities	Available on request
Intended Use	Research use only

Features

Defined anti-GBM target — raised against isolated rat glomerular basement membrane rather than whole glomerular preparations.
25 rats from one bottle — enough for a full study arm, its controls and its repeats on a single lot, so lot variation does not confound the treatment comparison.
Stated dose and route — 0.4–0.5 mL per 100 g body weight by slow tail-vein injection, so the protocol starts from a defined point rather than a guess.
Heat-treated — 56 °C for 30 minutes, which inactivates complement in the donor serum.
Defined formulation — 0.02 M PBS at pH 7.3, with no undeclared carrier.
Well-characterised model — the rat nephrotoxic serum nephritis model it supports is used across kinase inhibitor, anti-inflammatory and anti-fibrotic programmes; see Selected Literature below.
Bulk supply — larger volumes available for multi-cohort or long-running programmes.

Applications

Passive anti-GBM nephritis induction: The core application — establishing immune-mediated glomerulonephritis in rats.
Crescentic glomerulonephritis research: Glomerular crescent formation, parietal epithelial cell activation and Bowman's capsule rupture.
Anti-fibrotic drug evaluation: Progression to glomerulosclerosis and tubulointerstitial fibrosis as a therapeutic endpoint.
Kinase and signalling inhibitor testing: The model has been used to evaluate p38/JNK, ASK1, SYK and PAR-2 directed compounds.
Glomerular inflammation: Macrophage and neutrophil infiltration, glomerular thrombosis, mesangial proliferation.
Proteinuria and renal function studies: Time-course measurement of proteinuria, haematuria and renal impairment.
ANCA-associated vasculitis models: A sub-nephritogenic dose of anti-GBM serum is used to augment experimental MPO-ANCA vasculitis models.

Model Time Course

The following sequence is described in the product data for the rat passive anti-GBM nephritis model.

Time after injection	Phase	Expected finding
Minutes	Heterologous	Linear deposits of sheep IgG detectable along the GBM by immunofluorescence
24 hours	Heterologous	Proteinuria can develop; rat C3 localises in a linear pattern
3–5 days	Heterologous	Sheep IgG deposition increases in intensity
8–10 days	Autologous	Increased proteinuria and linear glomerular localisation of rat IgG
3 weeks	Autologous	Proteinuria can exceed 200 mg per 24 hours; glomerular lesions apparent
Beyond 3 weeks	Chronic	Lesions increase in severity, progressing to glomerulosclerosis. Chronic disease was not verified in the referenced product data.

Protocol Overview

Thaw and inspect. Thaw the serum and check for precipitate. A slight precipitate may form on thawing — centrifuge at 3,000–5,000 rpm for 30 minutes before injection and use the supernatant.
Run a dose-response study first. Disease severity is dose-dependent and varies with lot, rat source and strain. Titrate on a small group to establish the dose that gives the severity your endpoints require, before committing the main cohort.
Calculate the dose. 0.4–0.5 mL per 100 g body weight. For a 200 g rat this is approximately 0.8–1.0 mL.
Administer. Inject intravenously via the tail vein, delivering the dose slowly. Disease production is dose-dependent, so the complete dose must be delivered — a partial injection gives a partial model.
Include a control group. Pre-immune sheep serum at the same volume is the appropriate vehicle control, since it accounts for the response to heterologous serum itself.
Monitor. Collect timed urine for proteinuria, and sample at the time points matching your endpoint — day 1 for acute glomerular injury, day 14 and beyond for crescentic disease and fibrosis.
Aliquot what is left. Avoid repeated freeze-thaw cycles; aliquot before refreezing.

Strain and Endpoint Selection

Rat strains differ markedly in their susceptibility to nephrotoxic serum nephritis, and this is the single most common reason a model fails to reproduce. The published literature on the model reports the following pattern.

Strain	Reported behaviour in the model	Typical use
Sprague-Dawley	Acute glomerular injury; proteinuria and glomerular thrombosis	Short-term acute injury studies (around day 1)
Wistar-Kyoto (WKY)	Reported as uniquely susceptible to crescentic disease	Crescentic glomerulonephritis and fibrosis studies (around day 14 and beyond)
Lewis	Reported as resistant	Used in genetic susceptibility work rather than as a disease model

The product data recommend Sprague-Dawley; other strains were not tested in that data. The strain behaviour above is drawn from the published literature on the model rather than from testing of this product. Match the strain to your endpoint, and confirm the combination in a pilot before scaling up.

Storage & Shipping

Store at −20 °C or below.
Avoid repeated freeze-thaw cycles. Aliquot on first thaw if the full bottle will not be used at once.
A slight precipitate may form after thawing. Centrifuge at 3,000–5,000 rpm for 30 minutes before injection.
Shipping conditions are confirmed at order. Contact us if your destination has temperature or customs constraints.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Common questions about Biofargo BF001AGBM sheep anti-rat GBM serum.

What is BF001AGBM used for?

It is a sheep antiserum against isolated rat glomerular basement membrane, used to induce passive anti-GBM nephritis — the rat nephrotoxic serum nephritis model of immune-mediated glomerulonephritis. The model is associated with mesangial proliferation, inflammatory cell vasculitis, glomerulosclerosis and renal fibrosis.

What is the recommended dose?

0.4–0.5 mL per 100 g body weight, injected slowly into the tail vein. For a 200 g rat that is roughly 0.8–1.0 mL. Disease production is dose-dependent, so the complete dose must be delivered.

Do I need to run a dose-response study first?

Yes, and this is the step most often skipped. Antiserum lots, rat sources and experimental requirements all vary, so the dose that gives the severity your endpoints need has to be established for each lot. Titrating on a small pilot group costs a few animals; discovering the problem mid-study costs the study.

How many rats does one bottle cover?

At least 25 rats weighing 175–200 g at the stated dose. Budget the dose-response pilot into that number, not just the main cohort.

Which rat strain should I use?

The product data recommend Sprague-Dawley, and other strains were not tested in that data. In the published literature on the model, Sprague-Dawley rats are generally used for acute glomerular injury at around day 1, while Wistar-Kyoto rats are reported as uniquely susceptible to crescentic disease at day 14 and beyond, and Lewis rats are reported as resistant. Match the strain to your endpoint and confirm in a pilot.

What control should I run?

Pre-immune (normal) sheep serum at the same volume. A saline control does not account for the host response to heterologous serum itself, which is part of what drives the autologous phase. Contact us if you need a matched pre-immune serum.

What should I do if a precipitate appears after thawing?

A slight precipitate on thawing is expected. Centrifuge at 3,000–5,000 rpm for 30 minutes before injection and use the supernatant.

Has the serum been heat-treated?

Yes, at 56 °C for 30 minutes, which inactivates complement in the donor serum.

How should it be stored?

At −20 °C or below. Avoid repeated freeze-thaw cycles — aliquot on first thaw if you will not use the full bottle at once.

Can it be used in mice?

No. The product has not been validated or recommended for use in mice.

When does proteinuria appear, and how high does it go?

Proteinuria can develop after 24 hours and increases during the autologous phase from around day 8–10. By three weeks the product data state it can exceed 200 mg per 24 hours. Actual values depend on dose, strain and rat source.

Was chronic disease verified?

Chronic disease was not verified in the referenced product data. Lesions are described as increasing in severity beyond three weeks and progressing to glomerulosclerosis, but a chronic time course was not established.

What happened to the previous sheep anti-whole-rat-glomeruli serum?

BF001AGBM replaces it. Both target rat glomerular basement membrane and produce the same type of disease model.

Are bulk quantities and lot documentation available?

Yes. Bulk quantities are available, and lot documentation can be supplied on request — contact us with the catalog number and your required volume. If you need enough material from a single lot to cover a multi-cohort programme, tell us the total animal number and we will reserve it.

Can it be used for clinical or diagnostic purposes?

No. This product is for research use only. All animal work must be approved by the relevant institutional animal care and use committee.

Selected Literature

Representative studies using the rat nephrotoxic serum nephritis model. These papers describe the model and its endpoints; they are provided as background on the model rather than as validation of this specific product. Articles retrieved from PubMed.

Han Y, et al. Pharmacological inhibition of protease-activated receptor-2 reduces crescent formation in rat nephrotoxic serum nephritis. Clin Exp Pharmacol Physiol. DOI — Wistar-Kyoto rats immunised with sheep IgG followed by sheep nephrotoxic serum; crescent formation, glomerular thrombosis and macrophage infiltration at day 14.
Amos LA, et al. ASK1 inhibitor treatment suppresses p38/JNK signalling with reduced kidney inflammation and fibrosis in rat crescentic glomerulonephritis. J Cell Mol Med. DOI — uses Sprague-Dawley rats for acute glomerular injury at day 1 and Wistar-Kyoto rats for crescentic disease at day 14.
Han Y, et al. An inhibitor of spleen tyrosine kinase suppresses experimental crescentic glomerulonephritis. Int J Immunopathol Pharmacol. DOI — sheep anti-rat nephrotoxic serum in both Sprague-Dawley and Wistar-Kyoto rats; crescent formation reduced by 70% at day 14.
Ferhat M, et al. Targeting of oxidized Macrophage Migration Inhibitory Factor with antibody ON104 attenuates the severity of glomerulonephritis. PLoS One. DOI — single intravenous nephrotoxic serum injection in Wistar-Kyoto rats; proteinuria, haematuria, KIM-1 and crescent formation as endpoints.
Pavkovic M, et al. Glomerulonephritis-induced changes in kidney gene expression in rats. Genom Data. DOI — dose-ranging in Wistar-Kyoto and Sprague-Dawley rats, illustrating strain-dependent susceptibility.
Prendecki M, et al. Characterisation of an enhanced preclinical model of experimental MPO-ANCA autoimmune vasculitis. J Pathol. DOI — a sub-nephritogenic dose of anti-GBM nephrotoxic serum used to augment an MPO-ANCA vasculitis model.
D'Souza Z, et al. Experimental crescentic glomerulonephritis: a new bicongenic rat model. Dis Model Mech. DOI — genetic basis of the Wistar-Kyoto susceptibility and Lewis resistance to nephrotoxic nephritis.
Cerullo D, et al. Characterization of a rat model of myeloperoxidase-ANCA-associated crescentic glomerulonephritis. Nephron. DOI — sheep anti-rat GBM serum used at a sub-nephritogenic dose to boost disease in Wistar-Kyoto rats.

Documents

The product datasheet, SDS and lot documentation are available on request. Please contact us with the catalog number and lot number.

If you are planning a multi-cohort study and need material reserved from a single lot, tell us the total animal number and timeline and we will confirm availability before you order.

Sheep Anti-Rat GBM Serum (Nephrotoxic Serum) — BF001AGBM, 25 mL