TY  - JOUR
A1  - Rohde, Felix
A1  - Danz, Karin
A1  - Jung, Nathalie
A1  - Wagner, Sylvia
A1  - Windbergs, Maike
T1  - Electrospun scaffolds as cell culture substrates for the cultivation of an in vitro blood-brain barrier model using human induced pluripotent stem cells
T2  - Pharmaceutics
N2  - The human blood–brain barrier (BBB) represents the interface of microvasculature and the central nervous system, regulating the transport of nutrients and protecting the brain from external threats. To gain a deeper understanding of (patho)physiological processes affecting the BBB, sophisticated models mimicking the in vivo situation are required. Currently, most in vitro models are cultivated on stiff, semipermeable, and non-biodegradable Transwell® membrane inserts, not adequately mimicking the complexity of the extracellular environment of the native human BBB. To overcome these disadvantages, we developed three-dimensional electrospun scaffolds resembling the natural structure of the human extracellular matrix. The polymer fibers of the scaffold imitate collagen fibrils of the human basement membrane, exhibiting excellent wettability and biomechanical properties, thus facilitating cell adhesion, proliferation, and migration. Cultivation of human induced pluripotent stem cells (hiPSCs) on these scaffolds enabled the development of a physiological BBB phenotype monitored via the formation of tight junctions and validated by the paracellular permeability of sodium fluorescein, further accentuating the non-linearity of TEER and barrier permeability. The novel in vitro model of the BBB forms a tight endothelial barrier, offering a platform to study barrier functions in a (patho)physiologically relevant context.
KW  - electrospinning
KW  - blood–brain barrier
KW  - human induced pluripotent stem cells
KW  - tissue engineering
KW  - extracellular matrix
KW  - basement membrane
KW  - in vitro model
KW  - crosslinking
KW  - gelatin
KW  - polycaprolactone
Y1  - 2022
UR  - http://publikationen.ub.uni-frankfurt.de/frontdoor/index/index/docId/72091
UR  - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:hebis:30:3-720919
SN  - 1999-4923
N1  - Gefördert durch den Open-Access-Publikationsfonds der Goethe-Universität
VL  - 14
IS  - 6, art. 1308
SP  - 1
EP  - 22
PB  - MDPI
CY  - Basel
ER  -