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The microscopic observation of serial sections obtained from normal human kidneys allowed to demonstrate the presence of arteriovenous anastomoses in the juxtamedullary cortex. In particular one section is shown which clearly presents an anastomotic channel along with its connections to both an afferent arteriole and a venule.

Small arterious and venous vessels of the juxtamedullary cortex of normal human kidney present wall formations regulating the blood flow. The arterious devices appear either as sphincterial rings at the origins of collateral branches of interlobular arteries, or as groups of myoepithelioid cells in the wall of small arteries immediately preceding the afferent arterioles. The venular devices consist of circular muscular thickenings repeated along the course of the vessel.

Serologic HLA typing was carried out on 71 seropositive and 40 seronegative patients with rheumatoid arthritis and compared with values in 134 normal controls. A significant increase of HLA DR4 antigen, compared with control values, was found only in seropositive rheumatoid arthritis; HLA A1 and B35 antigens were significantly increased in seronegative rheumatoid arthritis patients (p less than 0.05), when compared with control values, but only HLA A1 antigen remained significantly higher when the p-correct test was performed.