scholarly journals A Review of Mathematics Determining Solute Uptake at the Blood–Brain Barrier in Normal and Pathological Conditions

Pharmaceutics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (5) ◽  
pp. 756
Author(s):  
Samuel A. Sprowls ◽  
Pushkar Saralkar ◽  
Tasneem Arsiwala ◽  
Christopher E. Adkins ◽  
Kathryn E. Blethen ◽  
...  

The blood–brain barrier (BBB) limits movement of solutes from the lumen of the brain microvascular capillary system into the parenchyma. The unidirectional transfer constant, Kin, is the rate at which transport across the BBB occurs for individual molecules. Single and multiple uptake experiments are available for the determination of Kin for new drug candidates using both intravenous and in situ protocols. Additionally, the single uptake method can be used to determine Kin in heterogeneous pathophysiological conditions such as stroke, brain cancers, and Alzheimer’s disease. In this review, we briefly cover the anatomy and physiology of the BBB, discuss the impact of efflux transporters on solute uptake, and provide an overview of the single-timepoint method for determination of Kin values. Lastly, we compare preclinical Kin experimental results with human parallels.

Pharmaceutics ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (6) ◽  
pp. 892
Author(s):  
Elisa L. J. Moya ◽  
Elodie Vandenhaute ◽  
Eleonora Rizzi ◽  
Marie-Christine Boucau ◽  
Johan Hachani ◽  
...  

Central nervous system (CNS) diseases are one of the top causes of death worldwide. As there is a difficulty of drug penetration into the brain due to the blood–brain barrier (BBB), many CNS drugs treatments fail in clinical trials. Hence, there is a need to develop effective CNS drugs following strategies for delivery to the brain by better selecting them as early as possible during the drug discovery process. The use of in vitro BBB models has proved useful to evaluate the impact of drugs/compounds toxicity, BBB permeation rates and molecular transport mechanisms within the brain cells in academic research and early-stage drug discovery. However, these studies that require biological material (animal brain or human cells) are time-consuming and involve costly amounts of materials and plastic wastes due to the format of the models. Hence, to adapt to the high yields needed in early-stage drug discoveries for compound screenings, a patented well-established human in vitro BBB model was miniaturized and automated into a 96-well format. This replicate met all the BBB model reliability criteria to get predictive results, allowing a significant reduction in biological materials, waste and a higher screening capacity for being extensively used during early-stage drug discovery studies.


2021 ◽  
Vol 22 (3) ◽  
pp. 1068
Author(s):  
Katarzyna Dominika Kania ◽  
Waldemar Wagner ◽  
Łukasz Pułaski

Two immortalized brain microvascular endothelial cell lines (hCMEC/D3 and RBE4, of human and rat origin, respectively) were applied as an in vitro model of cellular elements of the blood–brain barrier in a nanotoxicological study. We evaluated the impact of CdSe/ZnS core-shell-type quantum dot nanoparticles on cellular homeostasis, using gold nanoparticles as a largely bioorthogonal control. While the investigated nanoparticles had surprisingly negligible acute cytotoxicity in the evaluated models, a multi-faceted study of barrier-related phenotypes and cell condition revealed a complex pattern of homeostasis disruption. Interestingly, some features of the paracellular barrier phenotype (transendothelial electrical resistance, tight junction protein gene expression) were improved by exposure to nanoparticles in a potential hormetic mechanism. However, mitochondrial potential and antioxidant defences largely collapsed under these conditions, paralleled by a strong pro-apoptotic shift in a significant proportion of cells (evidenced by apoptotic protein gene expression, chromosomal DNA fragmentation, and membrane phosphatidylserine exposure). Taken together, our results suggest a reactive oxygen species-mediated cellular mechanism of blood–brain barrier damage by quantum dots, which may be toxicologically significant in the face of increasing human exposure to this type of nanoparticles, both intended (in medical applications) and more often unintended (from consumer goods-derived environmental pollution).


1991 ◽  
Vol 11 (4) ◽  
pp. 644-654 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Greenwood ◽  
J. Adu ◽  
A. J. Davey ◽  
N. J. Abbott ◽  
M. W. B. Bradbury

The action of bile salts upon the rat blood–brain barrier (BBB) was assessed in the absence of energy-yielding metabolism. Brains were perfused in situ with a Ringer solution for 5 min followed by a 1 min perfusion containing either sodium deoxycholate (DOC), taurochenodeoxycholate (TCDC), or Ringer/DNP. The integrity of the BBB was then determined by perfusing with the radiotracer [14C]mannitol for 2.5 min. Alternatively, the brains were perfusion fixed for ultrastructural assessment. At 0.2 m M DOC, the BBB remained intact and the cerebral ultrastructure was similar to the controls. At 1 m M and above, disruption of the BBB became evident. At 2 m M, the cerebral cortex became severely vacuolated, with damaged endothelium and collapsed capillaries. With TCDC, BBB disruption occurred at 0.2 m M without any apparent ultrastructural damage to the micro vasculature. Following 2 m M TCDC, similar, but less widespread, structural changes to the 2 m M DOC-perfused animals was apparent. Opening of the BBB occurred at a concentration lower than that required to cause lysis of either red blood cells or cultured cerebral endothelial cells. It is proposed that the effect of bile salts at concentrations of 1.5 m M and above is largely due to their lytic action as strong detergents on endothelial cell membranes, but that at lower concentrations a more subtle modification of the BBB occurs.


Author(s):  
Ivanka D. Markovic ◽  
Zoran B. Redzic ◽  
Suzana S. Jovanovic ◽  
Dusan M. Mitrovic ◽  
Ljubisa M. Rakic

2006 ◽  
Vol 6 (9) ◽  
pp. 2712-2735 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. M. Koziara ◽  
P. R. Lockman ◽  
D. D. Allen ◽  
R. J. Mumper

The present report encompasses a thorough review of drug delivery to the brain with a particular focus on using drug carriers such as liposomes and nanoparticles. Challenges in brain drug delivery arise from the presence of one of the strictest barriers in vivo—the blood-brain barrier (BBB). This barrier exists at the level of endothelial cells of brain vasculature and its role is to maintain brain homeostasis. To better understand the principles of brain drug delivery, relevant knowledge of the blood-brain barrier anatomy and physiology is briefly reviewed. Several approaches to overcome the BBB have been reviewed including the use of carrier systems. In addition, strategies to enhance brain drug delivery by specific brain targeting are discussed.


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