Effects of vascular endothelial cells on the neurite outgrowth of nerve cells.

Abstract

The vascular and neuronal networks are structurally complex and highly branched. These networks play an important role in supplying oxygen and sending signals to the tissues and organs in the body. This study proposes procedures to prepare in vitro neurovascular models on glass substrates and collagen gels for a better understanding of neurovascular interactions. Human umbilical vein endothelial cells (HUVECs) elongated the neurites of neuronal model cells (PC12 cells) on a glass substrate. In collagen gel cultures, the timing of supplementing nerve growth factor (NGF) was crucial for the formation of vascular and neural networks. Thus, neurite outgrowth was more effectively promoted by initially culturing the two cell types in the medium for vascular endothelial cells for 5 days to induce vascular organization and then adding NGF, rather than culturing the cells in the presence of NGF from the beginning. This simple sequential method may be useful for preparing 3-dimensional neurovascular models.