Oxygen gradients dictate angiogenesis but not barriergenesis in a 3D brain microvascular model.

A variety of biophysical properties are known to regulate angiogenic sprouting, and in vitro systems can parse the individual effects of these factors in a controlled setting. Here, a three-dimensional brain microvascular model interrogates how variables including extracellular matrix composition, fluid shear stress, and radius of curvature affect angiogenic sprouting of cerebral endothelial cells. Tracking endothelial migration over several days reveals that application of fluid shear stress and enlarged vessel radius of curvature both attenuate sprouting.

Microindentation of Fluid-Filled Cellular Domes Reveals the Contribution of RhoA-ROCK Signaling to Multicellular Mechanics.

Cellular mechanics encompass both mechanical properties that resist forces applied by the external environment and internally generated forces applied at the location of cell-cell and cell-matrix junctions. Here, the authors demonstrate that microindentation of cellular domes formed by cell monolayers that locally lift off the substrate provides insight into both aspects of cellular mechanics in multicellular structures. Using a modified Hertz contact equation, the force-displacement curves generated by a micro-tensiometer are used to measure an effective dome stiffness.

The SARS-CoV-2 spike protein alters barrier function in 2D static and 3D microfluidic in-vitro models of the human blood-brain barrier.

As researchers across the globe have focused their attention on understanding SARS-CoV-2, the picture that is emerging is that of a virus that has serious effects on the vasculature in multiple organ systems including the cerebral vasculature. Observed effects on the central nervous system include neurological symptoms (headache, nausea, dizziness), fatal microclot formation and in rare cases encephalitis. However, our understanding of how the virus causes these mild to severe neurological symptoms and how the cerebral vasculature is impacted remains unclear.

The SARS-CoV-2 spike protein alters barrier function in 2D static and 3D microfluidic in vitro models of the human blood-brain barrier.

As researchers across the globe have focused their attention on understanding SARS-CoV-2, the picture that is emerging is that of a virus that has serious effects on the vasculature in multiple organ systems including the cerebral vasculature. Observed effects on the central nervous system includes neurological symptoms (headache, nausea, dizziness), fatal microclot formation and in rare cases encephalitis. However, our understanding of how the virus causes these mild to severe neurological symptoms and how the cerebral vasculature is impacted remains unclear.