The renal cortex is the outer portion of the

kidney The kidneys are two reddish-brown bean-shaped organs found in vertebrates. They are located on the left and right in the retroperitoneal space, and in adult humans are about in length. They receive blood from the paired renal arteries; blo ...

between the renal capsule and the renal medulla. In the adult, it forms a continuous smooth outer zone with a number of projections (

cortical columns Cortex or cortical may refer to: Biology * Cortex (anatomy), the outermost layer of an organ ** Cerebral cortex, the outer layer of the vertebrate cerebrum, part of which is the ''forebrain'' *** Motor cortex, the regions of the cerebral cortex i ...

) that extend down between the

pyramids A pyramid (from el, πυραμίς ') is a structure whose outer surfaces are triangular and converge to a single step at the top, making the shape roughly a pyramid in the geometric sense. The base of a pyramid can be trilateral, quadrilate ...

. It contains the renal corpuscles and the renal tubules except for parts of the loop of Henle which descend into the renal medulla. It also contains blood vessels and cortical collecting ducts. The renal cortex is the part of the

where ultrafiltration occurs.

Erythropoietin Erythropoietin (; EPO), also known as erythropoetin, haematopoietin, or haemopoietin, is a glycoprotein cytokine secreted mainly by the kidneys in response to cellular hypoxia; it stimulates red blood cell production ( erythropoiesis) in th ...

is produced in the renal cortex.

Additional images

File:Njuren.gif, Kidney File:Kidney-Cortex.JPG, Microscopic cross section of the renal cortex File:Kidney_cd10_ihc.jpg, CD10 immunohistochemical staining of normal

. CD10 stains the proximal convoluted tubules and glomeruli. File:Slide1iii.JPG, Renal cortex File:Slide24iii.JPG, Renal cortex

References

Kidney anatomy {{genitourinary-stub