In the kidney, a renal corpuscle is the initial blood-filtering component of a nephron. It consists of two structures: a glomerulus and a Bowman's capsule. renal corpuscle is also known as a Malpighian corpuscle, named after Marcello Malpighi (1628–1694), an Italian physician and biologist. This name is not used widely anymore, probably to avoid confusion with a Malpighian corpuscle in the spleen.