Barrier Functional Integrity Recording on bEnd.3 Vascular Endothelial Cells via Transendothelial Electrical Resistance Detection

Summary

This protocol describes a dependable and efficient in vitro model of the brain blood barrier. The method uses mouse cerebral vascular endothelial cells bEnd.3 and measures transmembrane electrical resistance.

Abstract

The blood-brain barrier (BBB) is a dynamic physiological structure composed of microvascular endothelial cells, astrocytes, and pericytes. By coordinating the interaction between restricted transit of harmful substances, nutrient absorption, and metabolite clearance in the brain, the BBB is essential in preserving central nervous system homeostasis. Building in vitro models of the BBB is a valuable tool for exploring the pathophysiology of neurological disorders and creating pharmacological treatments. This study describes a procedure for creating an in vitro monolayer BBB cell model by seeding bEnd.3 cells into the upper chamber of a 24-well plate. To assess the integrity of cell barrier function, the conventional epithelial cell voltmeter was used to record the transmembrane electrical resistance of normal cells and CoCl₂-induced hypoxic cells in real-time. We anticipate that the above experiments will provide effective ideas for the creation of in vitro models of BBB and drugs to treat disorders of central nervous system diseases.

Introduction

BBB is a unique biological interface between blood circulation and nerve tissue, which is composed of vascular endothelial cells, pericytes, astrocytes, neurons, and other cellular structures¹. The flow of ions, chemicals, and cells between the blood and the brain is strictly regulated by this barrier. This homeostasis safeguards the nervous tissues against toxins and pathogens while also enabling the appropriate operation of the brain's nerves^2,3. Maintaining the integrity of the BBB can effectively prevent the development and progression of disorders affecting the central nervous ....

Protocol

NOTE: Mouse brain-derived Endothelial cells.3 (bEnd.3) were inoculated into the chambers of a 24-well plate to construct a simple in vitro model of BBB under specific medium conditions. The TEER of normal cells and hypoxic cells were measured by TEER meter (Figure 1 and Figure 2).

1. Solution preparation

1. Prepare the DMEM cell culture medium containing FBS (10%, v/v), 100 U/mL penicillin, and 10 mg.......

Discussion

One of the most developed bodily organs, the brain controls a wide range of intricate physiological processes, including memory, cognition, hearing, smell, and movement²⁷. The brain is one of the human body's most complicated and diseased organs at the same time. The occurrence of many central nervous system disorders shows a growing tendency year over year due to factors including air pollution, irregular eating patterns, and other factors^27,

Materials

Name	Company	Catalog Number	Comments
24-well transwell plate	Corning (Corning 3470, 0.33 cm2, 0.4 µm)	10522023
75 % ethanol	ChengDu Chron Chemicals Co,.Ltd	2023052901
96-well plate	Guangzhou Jet Bio-Filtration Co., Ltd	220412-078-B
bEnd.3 cells	Hunan Fenghui Biotechnology Co., Ltd	CL0049
Cell counting kit-8 (CCK-8)	Boster Biological Technology Co., Ltd	BG0025
Cell culture dish (100mm)	Zhejiang Sorfa Life Science Research Co., Ltd	1192022
Cobalt Chloride (CoCl2)	Sigma	15862
DMSO	Boster Biological Technology Co., Ltd	PYG0040
Dulbecco's modified eagle medium (1x)	Gibco ThermoFisher Scientific	8121587
Fetal bovine serum	Gibco ThermoFisher Scientific	2166090RP
GraphPad Prism software	GraphPad Software	9.0.0(121)
Matrigel (Contains collagen IV)	MedChemexpress	HY-K6002
Microplate reader	Molecular Devices	SpectraMax iD5
OriginPro 8 software	OriginLab Corporation	v8.0724(B724)
Penicillin-Streptomycin (100x)	Boster Biological Technology Co., Ltd	17C18B16
Phosphate buffered saline (PBS, 1x)	Gibco ThermoFisher Scientific	8120485
Sodium hypochlorite	ChengDu Chron Chemicals Co,.Ltd	2022091501
Transmembrane resistance meter	World Precision Instruments LLC	VOM3 (verison 1.6)
Trypsin 0.25% (1x)	HyClone	J210045