Vascular and extravascular distribution of the ATP-binding cassette transporters ABCB1 and ABCC1 in aged human brain and pituitary.

ABSTRACT: ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters play an increasing role in the understanding of pathologic peptide deposition in neurodegenerative diseases (NDs), such as Alzheimer's and Parkinson's. To describe the location of the most important ABC transporters for NDs in human brain tissue, we investigated ABCB1 and ABCC1 immunohistologically in the adult human brain and pituitary. Both transporters have similar but not identical expression patterns. In brain regions with an established blood-brain barrier (BBB), ABCB1 and ABCC1 were ubiquitously expressed in endothelial cells of the microvasculature and in a subset of larger blood vessels (mostly venules). Remarkably, both transporters were also found in fenestrated capillaries in circumventricular organs where the BBB is absent. Moreover, ABC

SUBMITTER: Bernstein HG 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4310818 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Nov-Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature