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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.
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.
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 nerves2,3. Maintaining the integrity of the BBB can effectively prevent the development and progression of disorders affecting the central nervous system, such as neuronal dysfunction, edema, and neuroinflammation4. However, the unique physiological properties of the BBB prevent more than 98% of small molecule medications and 100% of macromolecular pharmaceuticals from entering the central nervous system5. Therefore, increasing the penetration of medications through the BBB during the development of drugs for the central nervous system is essential for achieving therapeutic efficacy6,7. Even though computer simulation screening of substrates has significantly raised the probability of drug candidates crossing the BBB, reliable and affordable in vitro/in vivo BBB models are still needed to meet the needs of scientific research8.
A quick and affordable technique for high-throughput drug screening is the in vitro model9. To shed light on the fundamental processes of medicines' effects on BBB function and their part in the development and progression of disease, a series of simplified in vitro BBB models has been created. At present, the common in vitro BBB models are the monolayer, co-culture, dynamic, and microfluidic models10,11,12, constructed by vascular endothelial cells and astrocytes, pericytes, or microglia13,14. Although 3D cell cultures are morein line with the physiological structure of BBB15, their application as a means of drug screening for BBB is still constrained by their intricate design and subpar reproducibility. In contrast, the monolayer in vitro model is the one most frequently used to research the BBB and is applicable for determining the expression of membrane transporters and tight junction proteins in particular cells.
Transmembrane electrical resistance (TEER) measurement is a technique to evaluate and monitor the layer of cells across the resistance and evaluate the cell integrity and permeability of the barrier. By simultaneously inserting two electrodes into the growth medium or buffer solution on either side of the monolayer, it is possible to measure the alternating current or electrical impedance through the cell's compact layer16,17. In order to determine whether the in vitro BBB model has been properly created, the measurement of TEER will usually be employed as the gold standard18. On the other hand, the trend of medication action on BBB permeability can be accurately predicted by measuring the change in electrical resistance of the cell layer after drug involvement19. For example, Feng et al. discovered that catalpol (the primary active monomer of rehmanniae) could effectively reverse the lipopolysaccharide-induced down-regulation of tight junction proteins in the BBB and raise the TEER value of the mouse brain endothelial cell layer20.
The neuroinflammatory response is usually the main cause of BBB homeostasis imbalance21. Hypoxic treatment to induce neuroinflammatory injury is the main method to destroy the blood-brain barrier, mainly including physical methods and chemical reagent methods. The former primarily utilizes a three-gas incubator to vary the oxygen content in the cell growth environment to simulate hypoxic conditions22,while the latter is achieved by artificially introducing deoxy reagents such as CoCl2 to the cell culture medium23. The cells will remain in a deoxygenated condition if Fe2+ is substituted for Co2+ in the heme. If Fe2+ is substituted for Co2+ in the catalytic group, proline hydroxylase and aspartate hydroxylase activity will be inhibited, resulting in an accumulation of hypoxia-inducible factor-1α (HIF-1α)24. Under persistent hypoxia, the dephosphorylation of HIF-1α in the cytoplasm triggers cell death and activates vascular endothelial growth factor, which ultimately raises vascular permeability. In previous studies25,26, it has been well demonstrated that hypoxia can significantly reduce the expression of endothelial tight junction proteins to increase the permeability of BBB. In this study, the time-resistance curve of bEnd.3 cells seeded in 24-well plates were measured in order to create a straightforward BBB model. Using this model, we characterized the changes in cell TEER after CoCl2 intervention in order to construct a cell model that can be used to screen drugs for BBB protection.
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
2. Cell culture and cell viability
3. Model assembly
4. Measurement of TEER
5. Barrier destruction and statistical analysis
This protocol allowed the recording of changes in the resistance values of cells according to the parameters set in the transendothelial resistor meter. The viability of bEnd.3 cells (number of live cells) treated with different concentrations of CoCl2 were screened by CCK-8 assay. Greater cell damage produced by CoCl2 was represented by lower cell viability. We found that 300 µM of CoCl2 was significantly cytotoxic in vitro, and this concentration was used for the next expe...
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 factors27,
The authors have nothing to disclose.
We appreciate the financial support from the National Natural Science Foundation of China (82274207 and 82104533), the Key Research and Development Program of Ningxia (2023BEG02012), and Xinglin Scholar Research Promotion Project of Chengdu University of TCM (XKTD2022013).
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 |
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