Abstract
Endothelial cells (ECs) from different vascular beds not only display common characteristics but are also quite heterogeneous in terms of expression and secretion of neuro-angiogenic factors, which may help explain some of their distinct physiological roles. We investigated by RT-PCR the gene expression, by PC12 bioassay the neurotropic activity, and by ELISAs the levels of NGF and FGF-2 using conditioned medium collected from cultures of ECs derived from myocardial and cerebral capillaries. While NGF was expressed and released by both cell types, FGF-2 was expressed and released solely by the brain but not heart ECs. Oxygen-glucose deprivation (ischemic) insult blocked NGF secretion from heart and brain ECs and inhibited by 70% the secretion of FGF-2 from brain ECs. We propose that the differential expression of NGF and FGF-2 in heart and brain EC cultures reflect heterogeneity on demand of the microcapillary components and the surrounding microenvironment for a proper tissue-specific homeostasis.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 469-476 |
Number of pages | 8 |
Journal | In Vitro Cellular and Developmental Biology - Animal |
Volume | 46 |
Issue number | 5 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - May 2010 |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:Acknowledgments This work was supported in part by a grant-in-aid form the Stein Family Foundations (PL and PIL); PL is affiliated and partially supported by the David R. Bloom Center for Pharmacy; and the Dr. Adolf and Klara Brettler Center for Research in Molecular Pharmacology and Therapeutics at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Israel; SL is supported by "Eshkol" fellowship from the Israeli Ministry of Science and Technology.
Keywords
- Brain
- Endothelial heterogeneity
- FGF-2
- Heart
- NGF