Peripherally administered b-lactam antibiotics, which are structural analogs of tripeptides, may cause neurotoxic reactions or induce seizures. Previous in vivo studies provided evidence for brain uptake of these antibiotics. In the present work, we studied the extent and mechanism of the uptake of benzylpenicillin and glycylsarcosine by brain microvessel endothelial cells in vitro, using fresh...

Increased blood levels of the eotaxin chemokine C-C motif ligand 11 (CCL11) in aging were recently shown to negatively regulate adult hippocampal neurogenesis. How circulating CCL11 could affect the central nervous system (CNS) is not clear, but one possibility is that it can cross the blood-brain barrier (BBB). Here, we show that CCL11 undergoes bidirectional transport across the BBB. Transpor...

Brain capillary endothelial cells form a blood-brain barrier (BBB) that appears to play a role in fluid and ion homeostasis in brain. One important transport system that may be involved in this regulatory function is the Na+, K+-ATPase that was previously demonstrated to be present in isolated brain capillaries. The goal of the present study was to identify additional Na+ transport systems in b...

Exendin, a member of the glucagon-like peptide-1 family, and its antagonist exendin(9-39) affect cognition and neuronal survival after their intranasal delivery. Here, we examined the uptake of radioactively labeled exendin(9-39) (I-Ex) by the olfactory bulbs, brain (minus pineal, pituitary, and olfactory bulb), cerebrospinal fluid, and cervical lymph nodes (C-node) as well as levels in serum a...

PURPOSE Ceria engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) have current commercial applications and both neuroprotective and toxic effects. Our hypothesis is that ceria ENMs can associate with brain capillary cells and/or cross the blood-brain barrier. METHODS An aqueous dispersion of ∼5 nm ceria ENM was synthesized and characterized in house. Its uptake space in the Sprague Dawley rat brain was determine...

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE The sensitivity to the intoxicating effects of alcohol as well as its adverse medical consequences differ markedly among individuals, which reflects in part differences in alcohol's absorption, distribution, metabolism, and elimination (ADME) properties. The ADME of alcohol in the body and its relationship with alcohol's brain bioavailability, however, is not well underst...