FAULTY INDUCTION OF BLOOD-BRAIN-BARRIER FUNCTIONS BY ASTROCYTES ISOLATED FROM STROKE-PRONE SPONTANEOUSLY HYPERTENSIVE RATS

1, It has been suggested that astrocytes prompt the induction of blood -brain barrier (BBB) functions in cerebrovascular endothelial cells, 2 , In the present study,ve have tried to elucidate the genetic differen ces between astrocytes isolated from Wistar-Kyoto (WKY) control rats a nd astrocytes isolated from stroke-prone spontaneously hypertensive ra ts (SHRSP), 3, We show that endothelial cells develop tight junction-l ike structures, a reduction in vesicular transport and high electrical resistance when they are co-cultured with astrocytes isolated from WK Y rats, In contrast, SHRSP astrocytes have less of an ability to induc e BBB functions than do WKY astrocytes, 4, In addition, we demonstrate that SHRSP astrocytes produce enormous quantities of lactic acid when cerebral ischaemia develops, The decrease in pH causes astrocyte swel ling and damages BBB functions. 5, Consequently, we reason that geneti cally weak functions in astrocytes cause disruptions of BBB function a nd result in widespread cerebral lesions in SHRSP.