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Carriers for Brain Targeting
Published in Raj K. Keservani, Anil K. Sharma, Rajesh K. Kesharwani, Nanocarriers for Brain Targeting, 2019
Md. Sahab Uddin, Mst. Marium Begum
Figures 1.1 and 1.2 gives an idea of BBB and blood-cerebrospinal fluid barrier (BCSFB) and their various components. It is cleared to understand from the figures that how BBB protects the brain from most substances in the blood, supplying nutrients and restricting to enter poisonous elements from the brain. Endothelial cells which form the anatomical substrate called cerebral microvascular endothelium are the main components of BBB. BBB transfers solutes and other substances in and out of the brain, leukocyte migration and maintains the homeostasis of the brain microenvironment. Neurovascular unit is essential for the health and function of the CNS which is composed of cerebral microvascular endothelium, together with astrocytes, pericytes, neurons, and the extracellular matrix (Hawkins and Davis, 2005; Persidsky et al., 2006). The transport of solutes and other substances across BBB is firmly constrained through TJs, adherents junctions, and metabolic barriers (i.e., enzymes, diverse transport systems), thus excluding very small, electrically neutral, and lipid soluble molecules. For this reason, drugs or chemotherapeutic agents are unable to pass through the barrier.
Understanding Brain Delivery
Published in Carla Vitorino, Andreia Jorge, Alberto Pais, Nanoparticles for Brain Drug Delivery, 2021
Joana Bicker, Ana Fortuna, Gilberto Alves, Amílcar Falcäo
Molecular traffic between the blood and the CNS is regulated by protective barriers: the BBB, formed by brain endothelial cells (BECs) and other elements of the neurovascular unit, that is, astrocytes, pericytes, microglia, neurons and extracellular matrix; the blood-cerebrospinal fluid barrier (BCSFB), formed by epithelial cells of the choroid plexus, which secrete cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) into the cerebral ventricles; and the avascular arachnoid epithelium, which does not significantly contribute to exchanges between the blood and the CNS due to a smaller surface area [19].
Nanoparticles and New Challenges in Site-Specific Brain Drug Delivery
Published in Ana Rute Neves, Salette Reis, Nanoparticles in Life Sciences and Biomedicine, 2018
Ana C. R. Joyce Coutinho, Rúben G. R. Pinheiro, Ana Rute Neves
The BBB is formed by specialized brain endothelial cells, which form the cerebral microvascular endothelium. This endothelium, together with astrocytes, pericytes, neurons, microglia, and the extracellular matrix, constitutes a “neurovascular unit” that is essential for the health and function of the CNS (Fig. 9.1) [15].
Carnosine in health and disease
Published in European Journal of Sport Science, 2019
Guilherme Giannini Artioli, Craig Sale, Rebecca Louise Jones
Inadequate blood flow to the brain occurs in Alzheimer’s disease; mediated by microvascular defects in brain blood vessels and accompanied by impaired clearance of neurotoxins. In healthy elderly humans, Hisatsune et al. (2016) showed that supplementation with a formula containing anserine:carnosine (3:1, 1 g/day for 3 months) counteracted the decline in blood flow in the posterior cingulate cortex associated with ageing, providing confirmatory evidence of the ability of HCDs to improve cerebral blood flow. Importantly, better preservation of memory in healthy elderly individuals was also reported. Similar results were shown in a murine model of Alzheimer’s disease (Kaneko, Enya, Enomoto, Ding, & Hisatsune, 2017). Eight weeks of anserine supplementation improved memory impairment in the Morris water maze and contextual fear conditioning tests. Moreover, anserine resulted in suppressed glial inflammatory reactions in the hippocampus and increased pericytes coverage in brain capillaries – an indicator of neurovascular-unit function (Kaneko et al., 2017). No effects of anserine were, however, shown on β-amyloid plaques. In light of this evidence, carnosine has been postulated to control the progression of Alzheimer’s disease; clinical studies, however, are yet to be conducted to assess the relevance of carnosine-based therapies on Alzheimer’s disease progression.