Article
Engineering, Biomedical
Marie J. Pauwels, Junhua Xie, Adam Ceroi, Sriram Balusu, Jonas Castelein, Elien Van Wonterghem, Griet Van Imschoot, Andrew Ward, Trevelyan R. Menheniott, Oskar Gustafsson, Francis Combes, Samir El Andaloussi, Niek N. Sanders, Imre Mager, Lien Van Hoecke, Roosmarijn E. Vandenbroucke
Summary: The brain is protected by tightly regulated barriers, which impede drug delivery. Extracellular vesicles derived from choroid plexus epithelial cells have the potential to serve as drug delivery vehicles to bypass these barriers.
Review
Physiology
Jeff F. Dunn, Albert M. Isaacs
Summary: The blood-brain barrier, blood-cerebrospinal fluid barrier, and CSF-brain barriers are crucial for regulating the separation of nerves and glia from blood and CSF in the central nervous system. Hypoxia and inflammation can disrupt these barriers, impacting the overall health of the nervous system.
JOURNAL OF APPLIED PHYSIOLOGY
(2021)
Review
Nutrition & Dietetics
Shannon Morgan McCabe, Ningning Zhao
Summary: Manganese is an essential trace nutrient for life, but can become neurotoxic at high concentrations in the brain. The brain consists of two barriers - the blood-brain barrier (BBB) formed by endothelial cells and the blood-CSF barrier (BCB) formed by the choroid plexus - that prevent substances in the systemic circulation from reaching the brain and spinal cord. Studies have provided insights into manganese transport and metabolism in the brain, with a focus on the roles of the BBB and BCB in maintaining brain manganese homeostasis.
Review
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Haishu Chen, Jinan Xu, Hanyuan Xu, Tiancheng Luo, Yihao Li, Ke Jiang, Yangping Shentu, Zhiqian Tong
Summary: Alzheimer's disease (AD) is the most common form of dementia, characterized by the accumulation of amyloid beta protein (Aβ) and neurofibrillary tangles composed of hyperphosphorylated tau protein. However, drugs targeting Aβ and tau have not shown satisfactory clinical efficacy, challenging the hypothesis that AD is solely caused by Aβ cascade. Recent research suggests that endogenous formaldehyde, which increases with age, plays a direct role in the aggregation of Aβ and phosphorylation of tau, providing a new target for AD therapy. Moreover, the accumulation of Aβ in the extracellular space (ECS) hampers interstitial fluid drainage, hindering the successful delivery of AD drugs.
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Arseniy E. Yuzhalin, Dihua Yu
Summary: This review provides an overview of the role of extracellular matrix (ECM) in brain metastasis. It discusses the involvement of ECM in disrupting the blood-brain barrier, modulating brain metastasis dormancy, regulating brain metastasis seeding through activated integrin signaling, and the functions of brain-specific ECM protein reelin in brain metastasis. The possibility of targeting ECM for brain metastasis management is also considered.
CELLULAR AND MOLECULAR LIFE SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Pharmacology & Pharmacy
Xiande Wang, Cheng Wu, Shiming Liu, Deqing Peng
Summary: Brain cancer is a highly aggressive cancer with limitations in current treatment strategies. The blood-brain barrier and blood-cerebrospinal fluid barrier pose additional challenges in drug delivery to brain tumors. Dual-targeting strategies have shown promise in enhancing drug delivery efficiency and targeting of tumor cells in brain tumors.
Article
Neurosciences
Amirah-Iman Hicks, Simona Kobrinsky, Suijian Zhou, Jieyi Yang, Masha Prager-Khoutorsky
Summary: The subfornical organ (SFO) is a sensory circumventricular organ located along the anterodorsal wall of the third ventricle. SFO lacks a complete blood-brain barrier (BBB), and thus peripherally-circulating factors can penetrate the SFO parenchyma. The anatomical organization of the rat SFO reveals unique populations of non-neuronal cells, different types of vasculature, and distinct neuronal responses to stimuli like angiotensin II or hypertonic NaCl.
FRONTIERS IN CELLULAR NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Article
Neurosciences
Yuying Cen, Yuheng Shan, Jiahua Zhao, Xiaojiao Xu, Zhiyong Nie, Jiatang Zhang
Summary: This study aimed to investigate the impact of major transporters at the blood-brain barrier and blood-cerebrospinal fluid barrier on the pharmacokinetics of levofloxacin in rats. The results showed that the efflux of levofloxacin from the central nervous system involves multi-drug resistance-associated proteins, breast cancer resistance protein, and organic anion transporters. The concentrations of levofloxacin in cerebrospinal fluid can be used as a surrogate to predict the concentrations inside the brain parenchyma.
CNS NEUROSCIENCE & THERAPEUTICS
(2023)
Review
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Miguel M. Lino, Susana Simoes, Francesca Tomatis, Ines Albino, Angela Barrera, Denis Vivien, Tomas Sobrino, Lino Ferreira
Summary: Extracellular vesicles (EVs) serve as communication channels between different cell types in the brain and between the brain and the periphery, showing potential as nano-carriers for treating brain pathologies. While EVs contain bioactive factors and can be engineered for enhanced biological activity, challenges remain in their accumulation and therapeutic efficacy in the brain.
JOURNAL OF CONTROLLED RELEASE
(2021)
Review
Chemistry, Multidisciplinary
Ruoning Wang, Xiaohong Wang, Yuting Zhang, Huacong Zhao, Jiwei Cui, Junsong Li, Liuqing Di
Summary: In the past decade, bio-nanoparticles inspired by nature, particularly extracellular vesicles (EVs), have shown promise for the accurate diagnosis and treatment of brain diseases. These nanosized vesicles, with natural blood-brain barrier-crossability and excellent biocompatibility, offer a potential avenue for novel therapeutic and drug delivery applications in the field of brain diseases. Advances in EV nanotechnology provide new opportunities for the development of EV-based therapeutics.
JOURNAL OF CONTROLLED RELEASE
(2022)
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Ifechukwude Joachim Biose, Saifudeen Ismael, Blake Ouvrier, Amanda Louise White, Gregory Jaye Bix
Summary: Dementia has no cure, therefore, research efforts for potential therapies have increased, with integrins emerging as a strategy to improve cognitive impairment. Integrins are important signaling receptors in cells, with roles in cell interaction, adhesion, and synaptic transmission. They play a critical role in memory formation and disruption can lead to cognitive impairment. The review explores the physiological roles of integrins in the blood-brain barrier and memory formation, as well as their involvement in BBB disruption related to cerebral pathology. The potential therapeutic implications of targeting integrins in vascular contributions to cognitive impairment and dementia are discussed.
Review
Immunology
Josephine A. Mapunda, Houyam Tibar, Wafa Regragui, Britta Engelhardt
Summary: Multiple Sclerosis (MS) is the most common inflammatory demyelinating disease of the central nervous system (CNS), with varying prevalence worldwide. Understanding how immune cells enter the CNS and the effects of immunomodulatory treatments on neuroinflammation is crucial. The brain barriers play a key role in regulating immune cell entry into the CNS.
FRONTIERS IN IMMUNOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Peripheral Vascular Disease
Jose Leon, Jesenia Acurio, Lina Bergman, Juan Lopez, Anna Karin Wikstrom, Pablo Torres-Vergara, Felipe Troncoso, Fidel Ovidio Castro, Manu Vatish, Carlos Escudero
Summary: The study found that circulating small extracellular vesicles in plasma from women with preeclampsia or from hypoxic placentae disrupt the blood-brain barrier, which can be prevented using magnesium sulfate.
Article
Neurosciences
Yasuhiro Ogawa, Seioh Ezaki, Nobutake Shimojo, Satoru Kawano
Summary: The patient presented with various clinical symptoms of sepsis and after diagnosis and treatment, the orexin levels in the cerebrospinal fluid gradually recovered. This case provides new insights into the pathophysiology of sepsis-associated encephalopathy.
FRONTIERS IN NEUROSCIENCE
(2021)
Review
Neurosciences
Anna Kaisanlahti, Sonja Salmi, Sohvi Kumpula, Sajeen Bahadur Amatya, Jenni Turunen, Mysore Tejesvi, Nadiya Byts, Terhi Tapiainen, Justus Reunanen
Summary: This article reviews the progress in research on bacterial extracellular vesicles (EVs) crossing the blood-brain barrier and highlights the importance of EVs secreted by the gut microbiota in gut-brain communication.
FRONTIERS IN MOLECULAR NEUROSCIENCE
(2023)