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Recent in vitro Models for the Blood-Brain Barrier
Published in Carla Vitorino, Andreia Jorge, Alberto Pais, Nanoparticles for Brain Drug Delivery, 2021
João Basso, Maria Mendes, Maria Ferreira, João Sousa, Alberto Pais, Carla Vitorino
The assembling of a microfluid BBB model involves the culturing of brain endothelial cells. These are not fenestrated and slightly overlap in a monolayer. They are also characterised by expressing tight junction proteins, such as claudins, occludins and junction adhesion molecules, and adherens junction proteins, including cadherin and vinculin [2]. Due to the specificity of these transmembrane proteins, they are often used as markers for a successful BBB formation [39]. As a consequence, these cells are close enough to one another to block paracellular diffusion of macromolecules, polar solutes and ions [2]. Furthermore, the expression of other membrane channels, transporters and enzymes also contributes to the formation of the physical and chemical barrier which secludes the CNS.
CelIs as physical objects
Published in A. Šiber, P. Ziherl, Cellular Patterns, 2018
Cell‐cell adhesion is the fundamental physical process responsible for the existence of tissues. At the molecular scale, adhesion is caused by transmembrane proteins from the cadherin superfamily. There are hundreds of different cadherin types found in animals [27]. Cadherin molecules are anchored in the membrane (Figure 2.10), with their intracellular component attached to contractile actin‐filament bundles of the cell cortex. Their extra‐cellular part binds to a cadherin on the surface of the neighboring cell [28]. Regions of membrane where cells bind to each other are called adherens junctions. In epithelia, they are arranged in a belt‐like formation known as the adhesion belt running around the cell circumference.
Centralized Endothelial Mechanobiology, Endothelial Dysfunction, and Atherosclerosis
Published in Jiro Nagatomi, Eno Essien Ebong, Mechanobiology Handbook, 2018
Ian Chandler Harding, Eno Essien Ebong
Cell-to-cell junctions are prime examples of decentralized mechanotransduction structures. They contain a variety of multiprotein complexes that are used to maintain contact between neighboring cells and to support physiological functions such as paracellular permeability and cell-to-cell communication. The major complexes at cell-to-cell junctions are adherens junctions, tight junctions, and gap junctions. Adherens junctions are protein complexes that create extracellular bridges between neighboring cells, initiate and stabilize cell-to-cell contact, and affect cellular processes such as intracellular signaling and transcriptional regulation [153]. Adherens junctions are formed by the transmembrane protein vascular endothelial cadherin (VE-cadherin) (Figure 7.4), which is then attached to the actin cytoskeleton through a series of catenin family proteins [154]. Another cell-to-cell junction, tight junctions, help regulate paracellular permeability. They are mainly composed of two transmembrane proteins, occludins and claudins, which are similarly linked to the actin cytoskeleton by linker proteins, mainly the zonula occludens (ZO) proteins 1, 2, and 3 (ZO-1, ZO-2, and ZO-3) [153]. Lastly, gap junctions are intercellular channels created by proteins called connexins [155]. These proteins allow for the diffusion of ions and small molecules, thereby allowing cellular communication [155]. Additionally, the aforementioned junctions and proteins are accompanied by other junctional proteins such as platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule-1 (PECAM-1), which can both bridge ECs and serve as an anchor for circulating platelets and blood cells.
Methanolic extract of Teucrium persicum up-regulates and induces the membrane restoration of E-cadherin protein in PC-3 cells
Published in International Journal of Environmental Health Research, 2023
Majid Tafrihi, Anahita Naeimi, Fatemeh Eizadifard
The E-cadherin protein is the major transmembrane protein of adherens junction that interacts with cytoplasmic proteins including β-catenin protein via its highly conserved intracellular domain. Therefore, the E-cadherin/β-catenin complex plays a significant role in the maintenance of epithelial tissue architecture and cell polarity (Niessen et al. 2011). By and large, it is agreed that the disruption of this protein complex at the cell boundaries affects the epithelial integrity, cell polarity, cell migration, and Wnt signaling pathway (Tian et al. 2011).