Now there are actually two different types of nephrons present within the human
kidney.
90% of the nephrons that are in the human kidney
are almost completely located within the cortex.
They have very small amounts of the tubules,
that is the loop of Henle, dipping down into the medulla.
So these are predominantly located in the cortex, and are called
the Cortical Nephrons, and that's 90% of the Nephrons in the human kidney.
The second type of Nephron is called the Juxtamedullary Nephron.
This Nephron is predominantly located within both regions so
that it has in the beginning, we have our glomerulus and bomus capsule, and
proximal convoluted tubule within the cortex, but the tubules are predominately
descending deep into the medulla and then return back to the cortex for
the distal convoluted tubule, and then of course draining into the collecting duct.
So this particular nephron is called juxtamedullary,
juxta meaning near or next to, the medulla.
So the juxtamedullary nephron then is the nephron it has
tubules that distend deep within the medulla.
Only about 10% of the Nephrons of the human kidney
are the Juxtamedullary Nephrons.
But these nephrons are extremely important for
establishing an osmotic gradient within the medulla.
And this osmotic gradient extends from 300 million osmolar
to 1,200 milliosmolar, deep within the medulla.