Proliferation and neurogenesis of neural stem cells enhanced by cerebral microvascular endothelial cells.

In adult mammalian brain, vascular cells reside throughout life, close to central nervous system germinal zones, and neural stem cells (NSCs) mainly localize in the dentate gyrus of the hippocampus, subventricular zone, and olfactory bulb. Microvessels appear to produce a special microenvironment that may influence the characteristics of NSCs. To explore this potential correlation, an in vitro model with cocultured cerebral microvascular endothelial cells (CMECs) and NSCs was established in our study by using a transwell coculture system. The expression of nestin and NF in the early stage of coculture, and NF in the late stage, was detected by immunostaining. The results demonstrated that CMECs can stimulate self-renewal of NSCs and inhibit their differentiation, implying the potential of CMECs in promoting the neural differentiation of NSCs. © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc. Microsurgery, 2008.