Perlecan is a heparan sulfate proteoglycan and a major component of the glomerular
basement membrane. To understand the role of heparan sulfate chains of perlecan in
glomerular filtration, detailed analyses were performed of the kidneys ofHspg2 Δ3/Δ3 mice,
whose perlecan lacks heparan sulfate attachment sites in N-terminal domain I. Macroscopic,
histologic, and electron microscopic observations, as well as immunohistochemical and
immunoelectron microscopic analyses using specific antibodies against perlecan and agrin …