Structure and Junctional Complexes of Endothelial, Epithelial and Glial Brain Barriers

The homeostasis of the central nervous system (CNS) is ensured by the endothelial, epithelial, mesothelial and glial brain barriers, which strictly control the passage of molecules, solutes and immune cells. While the endothelial blood-brain barrier (BBB) and the epithelial blood-cerebrospinal fluid...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:International journal of molecular sciences 2019-10, Vol.20 (21), p.5372
Main Authors: Castro Dias, Mariana, Mapunda, Josephine A, Vladymyrov, Mykhailo, Engelhardt, Britta
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
adherens junctions
Adherens Junctions - physiology
Angiogenesis
Arachnoid
arachnoid barrier
Astrocytes
Basement Membrane
Biological Transport - physiology
Blood-Brain Barrier
blood-cerebrospinal fluid barrier
Brain - physiology
brain barriers
Central nervous system
Central Nervous System - immunology
Cerebrospinal fluid
Choroid Plexus
Compartments
Endothelial Cells - physiology
Endothelium
Epithelial Cells - physiology
Epithelium - physiology
Extracellular matrix
Gene expression
glia limitans
Homeostasis
Immune privilege
Immune system
Immunosurveillance
Membranes
Myocytes, Smooth Muscle
Nervous system
Neuroglia - physiology
neurovascular unit
Pericytes
Review
Reviews
Smooth muscle
Solutes
Spinal cord
tight junctions
Tight Junctions - physiology
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Summary:The homeostasis of the central nervous system (CNS) is ensured by the endothelial, epithelial, mesothelial and glial brain barriers, which strictly control the passage of molecules, solutes and immune cells. While the endothelial blood-brain barrier (BBB) and the epithelial blood-cerebrospinal fluid barrier (BCSFB) have been extensively investigated, less is known about the epithelial and mesothelial arachnoid barrier and the glia limitans. Here, we summarize current knowledge of the cellular composition of the brain barriers with a specific focus on describing the molecular constituents of their junctional complexes. We propose that the brain barriers maintain CNS immune privilege by dividing the CNS into compartments that differ with regard to their role in immune surveillance of the CNS. We close by providing a brief overview on experimental tools allowing for reliable in vivo visualization of the brain barriers and their junctional complexes and thus the respective CNS compartments.
ISSN:1422-0067
1661-6596
1422-0067
DOI:10.3390/ijms20215372