scholarly journals Immortalized Human Brain Endothelial Cells and Flow-Based Vascular Modeling: A Marriage of Convenience for Rational Neurovascular Studies

2007 ◽  
Vol 28 (2) ◽  
pp. 312-328 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luca Cucullo ◽  
Pierre-Olivier Couraud ◽  
Babette Weksler ◽  
Ignacio-Andres Romero ◽  
Mohammed Hossain ◽  
...  

In evaluating drugs that enter or are excluded from the brain, novel pharmaceutical strategies are needed. For this reason, we have developed a humanized Dynamic In vitro Blood—Brain Barrier model (hDIV-BBB) based on a novel human brain vascular endothelial cell line (HCMEC/D3), which closely mimics the BBB in vivo. In this system, HCMEC/D3 was grown in the lumen of hollow microporous fibers and exposed to a physiological pulsatile flow. Comparison with well-established humanized DIV-BBB models (based on human brain and non-brain vascular endothelial cells co-cultured with abluminal astrocytes) demonstrated that HCMEC/D3 cells cultured under flow conditions maintain in vitro physiological permeability barrier properties of the BBB in situ even in the absence of abluminal astrocytes. Measurements of glucose metabolism demonstrated that HCMEC/D3 cells retain an aerobic metabolic pathway. Permeability to sucrose and two relevant central nervous system drugs showed that the HCMEC/D3 cells grown under dynamic conditions closely mimic the physiological permeability properties of the BBB in situ (slope = 0.93). Osmotic disruption of the BBB was also successfully achieved. Peak BBB opening in the DIV-BBB lasted from 20 to 30 mins and was completely reversible. Furthermore, the sequence of flow cessation/reperfusion in the presence of leukocytes led to BBB failure as demonstrated by a biphasic decrease in transendothelial electrical resistance. Additionally, BBB failure was paralleled by the intraluminal release of proinflammatory factors (interleukin-6 and interleukin-1β) and matrix metalloproteinase-9 (MMP-9). Pretreatment with ibuprofen (0.125 mmol/L) prevented BBB failure by decreasing the inflammatory response after flow cessation/reperfusion.

Blood ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 115 (20) ◽  
pp. 4130-4137 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jinmin Gao ◽  
Lei Sun ◽  
Lihong Huo ◽  
Min Liu ◽  
Dengwen Li ◽  
...  

Cylindromatosis (CYLD) is a deubiquitinase that was initially identified as a tumor suppressor and has recently been implicated in diverse normal physiologic processes. In this study, we have investigated the involvement of CYLD in angiogenesis, the formation of new blood vessels from preexisting ones. We find that knockdown of CYLD expression significantly impairs angiogenesis in vitro in both matrigel-based tube formation assay and collagen-based 3-dimensional capillary sprouting assay. Disruption of CYLD also remarkably inhibits angiogenic response in vivo, as evidenced by diminished blood vessel growth into the angioreactors implanted in mice. Mechanistic studies show that CYLD regulates angiogenesis by mediating the spreading and migration of vascular endothelial cells. Silencing of CYLD dramatically decreases microtubule dynamics in endothelial cells and inhibits endothelial cell migration by blocking the polarization process. Furthermore, we identify Rac1 activation as an important factor contributing to the action of CYLD in regulating endothelial cell migration and angiogenesis. Our findings thus uncover a previously unrecognized role for CYLD in the angiogenic process and provide a novel mechanism for Rac1 activation during endothelial cell migration and angiogenesis.


Development ◽  
1995 ◽  
Vol 121 (4) ◽  
pp. 1089-1098 ◽  
Author(s):  
T.M. Schlaeger ◽  
Y. Qin ◽  
Y. Fujiwara ◽  
J. Magram ◽  
T.N. Sato

Vascular endothelial cells play essential roles in the function and development of the cardiovascular system. However, due to the lack of lineage-specific markers suitable for molecular and biochemical analyses, very little is known about the molecular mechanisms that regulate endothelial cell differentiation. We report the first vascular endothelial cell lineage-specific (including angioblastic precursor cells) 1.2 kb promoter in transgenic mice. Moreover, deletion analysis of this promoter region in transgenic embryos revealed multiple elements that are required for the maximum endothelial cell lineage-specific expression. This is a powerful molecular tool that will enable us to identify factors and cellular signals essential for the establishment of vascular endothelial cell lineage. It will also allow us to deliver genes specifically into this cell type in vivo to test specifically molecules that have been implicated in cardiovascular development. Furthermore, we have established embryonic stem (ES) cells from the blastocysts of the transgenic mouse that carry the 1.2 kb promoter-LacZ reporter transgene. These ES cells were able to differentiate in vitro to form cystic embryoid bodies (CEB) that contain endothelial cells determined by PECAM immunohistochemistry. However, these in vitro differentiated endothelial cells did not express the LacZ reporter gene. This indicates the lack of factors and/or cellular interactions which are required to induce the expression of the reporter gene mediated by this 1.2 kb promoter in this in vitro differentiation system. Thus this system will allow us to screen for the putative inducers that exist in vivo but not in vitro. These putative inducers are presumably important for in vivo differentiation of vascular endothelial cells.


1996 ◽  
Vol 316 (3) ◽  
pp. 703-707 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ralf BIRKENHÄGER ◽  
Bernard SCHNEPPE ◽  
Wolfgang RÖCKL ◽  
Jörg WILTING ◽  
Herbert A. WEICH ◽  
...  

Vascular endothilial growth factor (VEGF) and placenta growth factor (PIGF) are members of a dimeric-growth-factor family with angiogenic properties. VEGF is a highly potent and specific mitogen for endothelial cells, playing a vital role in angiogenesis in vivo. The role of PIGF is less clear. We expressed the monomeric splice forms VEGF-165, VEGF-121, PIGF-1 and PlGF-2 as unfused genes in Escherichia coli using the pCYTEXP expression system. In vitro dimerization experiments revealed that both homo- and hetero-dimers can be formed from these monomeric proteins. The dimers were tested for their ability to promote capillary growth in vivo and stimulate DNA synthesis in cultured human vascular endothelial cells. Heterodimers comprising different VEGF splice forms, or combinations of VEGF/PlGF splice forms, showed mitogenic activity. The results demonstrate that four different heterodimeric growth factors are likely to have as yet uncharacterized functions in vivo.


2020 ◽  
Vol 40 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jung-Joon Cha ◽  
Hoyeon Lee ◽  
Miyoung Kim ◽  
Juyoung Kang ◽  
Hanlim Song ◽  
...  

Abstract Vascular endothelial cells are essential to vascular function and maintenance. Dysfunction of these cells can lead to the development of cardiovascular disease or contribute to tumorigenesis. As such, the therapeutic modulation and monitoring of vascular endothelial cells are of significant clinical interest, and several endothelial-specific ligands have been developed for drug delivery and the monitoring of endothelial function. However, the application of these ligands has been limited by their high cost and tendency to induce immune responses, highlighting a need for alternate methods of targeting vascular endothelial cells. In the present study, we explore the therapeutic potential of DNA aptamers. Using cell-SELEX technology, we identified two aptamers with specific binding affinity for vascular endothelial cells and propose that these molecules show potential for use as new ligands for drug and biomarker research concerning vascular endothelial cells.


1983 ◽  
Vol 60 (1) ◽  
pp. 89-102
Author(s):  
D de Bono ◽  
C. Green

The interactions between human or bovine vascular endothelial cells and fibroblast-like vascular intimal spindle-shaped cells have been studied in vitro, using species-specific antibodies to identify the different components in mixed cultures. Pure cultures of endothelial cells grow as uniform, nonoverlapping monolayers, but this growth pattern is lost after the addition of spindle cells, probably because the extracellular matrix secreted by the latter causes the endothelial cells to modify the way they are attached to the substrate. The result is a network of tubular aggregates of endothelial cells in a three-dimensional ‘polylayer’ of spindle-shaped cells. On the other hand, endothelial cells added to growth-inhibited cultures of spindle-shaped cells will grow in sheets over the surface of the culture. Human endothelial cells grown in contact with spindle-shaped cells have a reduced requirement for a brain-derived endothelial growth factor. The interactions of endothelial cells and other connective tissue cells in vitro may be relevant to the mechanisms of endothelial growth and blood vessel formation in vivo, and emphasize the potential importance of extracellular matrix in controlling endothelial cell behaviour.


2018 ◽  
Vol 46 (2) ◽  
pp. 520-531 ◽  
Author(s):  
Yan Ding ◽  
Lanlan Shan ◽  
Wenqing Nai ◽  
Xiaojun Lin ◽  
Ling Zhou ◽  
...  

Background/Aims: The mechanistic target of rapamycin (mTOR) signaling pathway is essential for angiogenesis and embryonic development. DEP domain-containing mTOR-interacting protein (DEPTOR) is an mTOR binding protein that functions to inhibit the mTOR pathway In vitro experiments suggest that DEPTOR is crucial for vascular endothelial cell (EC) activation and angiogenic responses. However, knowledge of the effects of DEPTOR on angiogenesis in vivo is limited. This study aimed to determine the role of DEPTOR in tissue angiogenesis and to elucidate the molecular mechanisms. Methods: Cre/loxP conditional gene knockout strategy was used to delete the Deptor gene in mouse vascular ECs. The expression or distribution of cluster of differentiation 31 (CD31), vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF) and hypoxia inducible factor-1 alpha (HIF-1α) were detected by immunohistochemical staining or western blot. Tube formation assay was used to measure angiogenesis in vitro. Results: Deptor knockdown led to increased expression of CD31, VEGF and HIF-1α in heart, liver, kidney and aorta. After treatment with rapamycin, their expression was significantly down regulated. In vitro, human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) were transfected with DEPTOR-specific small interfering RNA (siRNA), which resulted in a significant increase in endothelial tube formation and migration rates. In contrast, DEPTOR overexpression markedly reduced the expression of CD31, VEGF and HIF-1α. Conclusions: Our findings demonstrated that deletion of the Deptor gene in vascular ECs resulted in upregulated expression of CD31 and HIF-1α, and further stimulated the expression of VEGF which promoted angiogenesis, indicating that disruption of normal angiogenic pathways may occur through hyperactivation of the mTORC1/HIF-1α/VEGF signaling pathway.


Author(s):  
LeShana SaintJean ◽  
H.S. Baldwin

The endocardium represents a distinct population of endothelial cells that arises during the initiation of heart development. Endocardial cells can easily be distinguished from most of the other cardiac cell types. However, endocardial and vascular endothelial cells contain a similar genetic profile that limits the ability to study each group independently. Despite these limitations, tremendous progress has been made in identifying the different roles of endocardial cells throughout heart development. Initial studies focused on the origin of endocardial cells and their role in valvulogenesis, trabeculation, and formation of the ventricular and atrial septum. With the advancement of microscopy and the availability of endocardial specific reporter models (in vitro and in vivo) we have obtained more insight into the molecular, structural, and functional complexity of the endocardium. Additional studies have demonstrated how the endocardium is also involved in the development of coronary vessels within the compact myocardium and in heart regeneration.


2017 ◽  
Vol 38 (5) ◽  
pp. 3153-3159 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xinwen Wang ◽  
Weifeng Xu ◽  
Shenglin Wang ◽  
Feqiang Yu ◽  
Jinyi Feng ◽  
...  

2012 ◽  
Vol 302 (4) ◽  
pp. H983-H991 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ji Zhang ◽  
Morton H. Friedman

The adaptation of vascular endothelial cells to shear stress alteration induced by global hemodynamic changes, such as those accompanying exercise or digestion, is an essential component of normal endothelial physiology in vivo. An understanding of the transient regulation of endothelial phenotype during adaptation to changes in mural shear will advance our understanding of endothelial biology and may yield new insights into the mechanism of atherogenesis. In this study, we characterized the adaptive response of arterial endothelial cells to an acute increase in shear stress magnitude in well-defined in vitro settings. Porcine endothelial cells were preconditioned by a basal level shear stress of 15 ± 15 dyn/cm2 at 1 Hz for 24 h, after which an acute increase in shear stress to 30 ± 15 dyn/cm2 was applied. Endothelial permeability nearly doubled after 40-min exposure to the elevated shear stress and then decreased gradually. Transcriptomics studies using microarray techniques identified 86 genes that were sensitive to the elevated shear. The acute increase in shear stress promoted the expression of a group of anti-inflammatory and antioxidative genes. The adaptive response of the global gene expression profile is triphasic, consisting of an induction period, an early adaptive response (ca. 45 min) and a late remodeling response. Our results suggest that endothelial cells exhibit a specific phenotype during the adaptive response to changes in shear stress; this phenotype is different than that of fully adapted endothelial cells.


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