Astroglial-induced in vitro angiogenesis: requirements for RNA and protein synthesis

Astrocytes are believed to affect microvascular endothelial cell differentiation in brain and retina. Bovine retinal microvessel endothelial cells formed capillary-like structures when cocultured with C6 astroglial cells or in the absence of C6 cells in response to the reconstituted basement membrane protein Matrigel. Using quantitative computer-assisted image analysis, the requirements for RNA and protein synthesis in these two complementary models of in vitro microvessel morphogenesis were examined. Astroglial-dependent capillary-like structure formation was inhibited by up to 87% in a dose-dependent fashion by cycloheximide (0.01-0.1 micrograms/ml), puromycin (0.1-0.25 micrograms/ml), and actinomycin D (0.01-0.025 micrograms/ml). In contrast, the astroglial-independent process in response to Matrigel was not affected by these metabolic inhibitors. These findings suggest that capillary-like structures form in response to astroglial cells in two distinct sequential stages. The first consists of inductive astroglial-endothelial interactions requiring both RNA and protein synthesis. This initiates endogenous endothelial morphogenic events that do not appear to require RNA or protein synthesis, consistent with posttranslational regulatory mechanisms. The first astroglial-dependent step is relevant to the regulation of microvessel formation in brain and retina, whereas the second may represent a morphogenic pathway common to microvessel formation in many tissues.

The glucose transporter and blood-brain barrier of human brain tumors

The glucose transporter of the human brain has been localized to endothelial cells expressing the blood-brain barrier, but little is known regarding its mechanism of induction or whether its expression is exclusively linked with restricted vascular permeability. We investigated glucose transporter expression by vessels in human astrocytic tumors and pulmonary metastases to the brain using immunohistochemical techniques. Vessels in 9 of 10 low-grade astrocytomas and 8 of 10 anaplastic astrocytomas were positive for glucose transporter. Glioblastoma vessels were transporter-positive in only 2 of 10 specimens. Vessels in all three metastatic tumors were negative for the glucose transporter. The decrease in transporter expression observed in higher-grade tumors occurred independently of increases in vascular permeability. In low-grade astrocytomas and glioblastomas transporter expression and contrast enhancement were inversely related, but vessels in 6 of 9 anaplastic astrocytomas were transporter-positive despite contrast enhancement. These findings suggest that separate mechanisms induce the glucose transporter and the permeability restrictions of the human blood-brain barrier. They also have potential implications for the therapy and prognosis of astroglial neoplasms.

Astrocytes induce neural microvascular endothelial cells to form capillary-like structures in vitro

Astrocytes maintain a unique association with the central nervous system microvasculature and are thought to play a role in neural microvessel formation and differentiation. We investigated the influence of astroglial cells on neural microvascular endothelial differentiation in vitro. Using an astroglial-endothelial coculture system, rat brain astrocytes and C6 cells of astroglial lineage are shown to induce bovine retinal microvascular endothelial (BRE) cells to form capillary-like structures. Light microscopic evidence for endothelial reorganization began within 48 hours and was complete 72-96 hours following the addition of BRE cells to 1-day-old astroglial cultures. The extent of BRE reorganization was quantitated by computer-assisted analysis and shown to be dependent upon the density of both the BRE and C6 cells within the cocultures. Coculture conditions in which BRE cells were separated from C6 cells by porous membranes failed to generate this endothelial cell change. Likewise, C6-conditioned media and C6-endothelial coculture conditioned media did not induce BRE cell reorganization. Extracellular laminin within the C6-endothelial cocultures, identified by indirect immunofluorescence, was concentrated at the endothelial-astroglial interface of capillary-like structures consistent with incipient basement membrane formation. Astroglial cells accumulated adjacent to capillary-like structures suggesting the presence of bidirectional influences between the reorganized endothelial cells and astroglia. This is the first demonstration of astroglial induction of angiogenesis in vitro and these findings support a functional role for perivascular astrocytes in the vascularization of neural tissue such as retina and brain.

Transient amnesia resulting from vertebral artery dissection

Acute transient amnesia has not been previously associated with vertebral artery dissection. We describe two men with acute onset of dense anterograde amnesia and partial retrograde amnesia resulting from spontaneous vertebral artery dissection. Both amnesic syndromes completely resolved with conservative management.

Close and focal contact adhesions of fibroblasts to a fibronectin-containing matrix

The fibroblast cell line Balb/c 3T3 makes both close and tight-focal adhesive contacts with the plasma fibronectin (pFn)-coated tissue culture substratum. Detachment of these cells mediated by ethylene glycol bis(beta-aminoethyl ether)-N,N,N',N'-tetraacetic acid leaves tight-focal contacts and a subset of close contacts as substratum-attached material (SAM). The enrichment of heparan sulfate (HS) proteoglycan (HS-PG) in SAM under specific attachment conditions, as well as the recent demonstration of HS binding to pFn or cellular Fn, has evolved a series of experiments with the selective HS-binding protein platelet factor-4 to analyze the requirement of the HS-binding activity of pFn in the formation of these two types of adhesive contacts. In addition, the cell-binding domain (CBD) of pFn, which recognizes an unidentified cell surface receptor, has been isolated free of HS-binding domains after proteolytic cleavage of pFn. These functional studies indicate that the binding of pFn on the substratum to cell surface HS-PG is necessary and sufficient to generate close contacts with transmembrane signaling of this proteoglycan to reorganize lengthy microfilament bundles in the cytoplasm. Cells spread incompletely on CBD alone, form only close contacts, and reorganize highly concentrated actin filaments only in their spiky projections. Furthermore, the formation of tight-focal contacts with associated stress fibers appears to require both reactions of pFn, binding to cell surface HS-PG and to its unidentified receptor. The importance of HS-PG in these functional studies has led to its better biochemical characterization in SAM. Initially formed close contacts of these cells contain principally a large HS-PG that aggregates into high-molecular-weight complexes by some unknown mechanism. With time, there are two different mechanisms of catabolism of HS-PG, one of which includes the liberation of single-chain HS. The importance of these changes in the HS-PG in SAM are now being analyzed with regard to the formation and disappearance of close and tight-focal adhesions.

Contact formation by fibroblasts adhering to heparan sulfate-binding substrata (fibronectin or platelet factor 4)

The process of cell-substratum adhesion of BALB/c 3T3 fibroblasts on fibronectin (FN)-coated substrata was compared with that of cells adhering to substrata coated with the heparan sulfate (HS)-binding protein, platelet factor four (PF4). FN has binding domains for HS and an unidentified cell surface receptor, whereas PF4 binds to only HS on the surface of the cell. The attachment and early spreading sequences of cells on either substratum were similar as shown by scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Within 2 h of spreading, cells on FN developed typical fibroblastic morphologies, whereas those on PF4 lacked polygonal orientations and formed numerous broadly spread lamellae. Interference reflection microscopic analysis indicated that PF4-adherent cells formed only close adhesive contacts, whereas FN-adherent cells formed both close contacts and tight focal contacts. Cells on either substratum responded to Ca2+ chelation with EGTA by rounding up, but remained adherent to the substratum by relatively EGTA-resistant regions of the cell's undersurface, demonstrating that cell surface HS by binding to an appropriate substratum is capable of initiating a Ca2+-dependent spreading response. The EGTA-resistant substratum-attached material on PF4 was morphologically similar to that on FN, the latter of which was derived from both tight focal contacts and discrete specializations within certain close contacts. These studies show that heparan sulfate proteoglycans on the surface of these cells can participate in the formation of close contact adhesions by binding to an appropriate substratum and suggest that sub-specializations within close contact adhesions may evolve into tight focal contacts by the participation of an unidentified cell surface receptor which binds specifically to fibronectin but not to PF4. In addition, the functional role of FN in tight focal contact formation is demonstrated.

Cell surface heparan sulfate mediates some adhesive responses to glycosaminoglycan-binding matrices, including fibronectin

Proteins with affinities for specific glycosaminoglycans (GAC's) were used as probes for testing the potential of cell surface GAG's to mediate cell adhesive responses to extracellular matrices (ECM). Plasma fibronectin (FN) and proteins that bind hyaluronate (cartilage proteo-glycan core and link proteins) or heparan sulfate (platelet factor 4 [PF4]) were adsorbed to inert substrata to evaluate attachment and spreading of several 3T3 cell lines. Cells failed to attach to hyaluronate-binding substrata. The rates of attachment on PF4 were identical to those on FN; however, PF4 stimulated formation of broad convex lamellae but not tapered cell processes fibers during the spreading response. PF4-mediated responses were blocked by treating the PF4-adsorbed substratum with heparin (but not chondroitin sulfate), or alternatively the cells with Flavobacter heparinum heparinase (but not chondroitinase ABC). Heparinase treatment did not inhibit cell attachment to FN but did inhibit spreading. Cells spread on PF4 or FN contained similar Ca2+-independent cell-substratum adhesions, as revealed by EGTA-mediated retraction of their substratum-bound processes. Microtubular networks reorganized in cells on PF4 but failed to extend into the broadly spread lamellae, where fine microfilament bundles had developed. Stress fibers, common on FN, failed to develop on PF4. These experiments indicate that (a) heparan sulfate proteoglycans are critical mediators of cell adhesion and heparan sulfate-dependent adhesion via PF4 is comparable in some, but not all, ways to FN-mediated adhesion, (b) the uncharacterized and heparan sulfate-independent "cell surface" receptor for FN permits some but not all aspects of adhesion, and (c) physiologically compatible and complete adhesion of fibroblasts requires binding of extracellular matrix FN to both the unidentified "cell surface" receptor and heparan sulfate proteoglycans.

Glycosaminoglycans that bind cold-insoluble globulin in cell-substratum adhesion sites of murine fibroblasts

Glycosaminoglycans (GAGs) and glycoprotein-derived glycopeptide from mouse BALB/c3T3 and simian virus 40-transformed 3T3 whole cells or their adhesion sites, which are left bound to the serum-coated tissue culture substratum after detachment of cells mediated by [ethylenebis-(oxyethylenenitrilo]tetraacetic acid (EGTA), were analyzed for specific binding to Sepharose columns derivatized with cold-insoluble globulin (CIg). CIg is the serum-contained form of fibronectin and is required for the adhesion of these fibroblasts to the substratum. Of the various GAGs present in these fractions of either cell type, only the highly N-sulfated sequences of heparan sulfate and a small subset of dermatan sulfate bind to CIg-Sepharose. There was no detectable binding of glycopeptide, undersulfated heparan sulfate, the various chondroitin species, or hyaluronate. Adhesion sites from newly attaching cells were greatly enriched in CIg-binding heparan sulfate when compared to long-term-growth adhesion sites or EGTA-detached cells. Various properties of binding were determined. The reference standard standard GAGs heparin (or heparan sulfate) and dermatan sulfate were able to displace bound radiolabeled adhesion site GAG from the column, whereas the other GAGs had no effect. CIg has been shown to be the only adhesion-promoting activity in the serum layer of this culture system. Because these fibroblast adhesion sites do not contain collagen, which could potentially mediate adhesion to the substratum-bound CIg, these data support other evidence that multivalent heparan sulfate proteoglycans mediate substratum adhesion of these cells by coordinate binding to fibronectin on the cell surface and CIg on the substratum.

Effect of postnatal age and clinical status of newborn infants on bilirubin-binding capacity

Serial determinations of bilirubin-binding capacity were performed in 61 newborn infants during the first 10 days of life. 27 infants were classified as term (gestational age greater than or equal to 36 weeks) and 34 as preterm (gestational age less than or equal to 33 weeks); 34 were classified as 'sick' and 27 as 'well'. Bilirubin-binding capacity was measured by Sephadex gel filtration. In relation to postnatal age, total bilirubin-binding capacity (TBBC) remained stable in well term and preterm infants, decreased slightly in sick preterm infants, and decreased significantly in sick term infants. TBBC, serum albumin, and molr binding ratio (B/A) were significantly higher in well than in sick infants in both term and preterm groups; there were no significant differences between sick term and sick preterm infants. Clinical recovery in 16 infants was associated with a significant rise in TBBC and in B/A. The data suggest that in healthy infants, the serum bilirubin-binding capacity remains relatively unchanged during the first 10 days of life. Clinically ill infants show wide patient-to-patient variability in TBBC. Because of the tendency of TBBC to decrease with postnatal age in sick infants, repeated determinations of TBBC may be indicated for the management of sick jaudiced newborns.