The Blood Brain Barrier

The progress of neuroscience has been significant in the past 500 years. and with the advance of technology, there is yet a multitude of chapters left to write in the history books of neuroscience. The book The Tale of the Dueling Neurosurgeons: written by Sam Kean was an engrossing and captivating read. It gives the reader a better appreciation for the growing pains of neuroscience and provides an educational, albeit entertaining overview of the anatomy and physiology of the brain and nervous system. From the early life and discoveries of Santiago Ramón y Cajal and his fascination with Golgi’s method la razione nera, which allowed Cajal to deduct after observing

The central nervous system (CNS) comprises grey matter, which contains neuron cell bodies and white matter, which contains the nerve axons. Most of the nerve axons are concentrically wrapped around by lipid-rich biological membrane, known as the myelin sheath. In the CNS, myelin is produced by oligodendrocyte. a type of glial cell. (Pfeiffer et al., 1993). These electrical insulating, multilamellar membranes significantly increase the electrical resistance, in which to prevent leakage of electrical currents from the axons, as well as decrease electrical capacitance to reduce the ability of the axons to store electrical energy (Shivane &

There are many expecting mothers who suffer from serious mental illnesses like schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, or borderline personality disorder that requires they must take antipsychotic drugs to remain stable. There are different types of antipsychotics like typical and atypical. Typical antipsychotics are classified as the first generation of antipyschotics. The atypical antipsychotics, the second generation, are reported to be safer than the typical antipsychotics because they are the newer form of antipsychotic medication. Even though they are reported to be safer, they still have severe side effects on the individual consuming it, like tardive dyskinesia, which are uncontrollable movements of the mouth (McCauley et al., 2009). Some drugs can affect the fetus by transferring to the blood-brain barrier. The blood-brain barrier is a permeable barrier that allows some chemicals to pass through. It separates the circulating blood from the brain extracellular fluid in the central nervous system. The blood-brain barrier also transports molecules to the brain that are essential to function properly, like glucose and amino acids. Since capillary endothelial cells, which line the whole circulatory system, form the blood-brain barrier the medication could be transported to the fetus. From

The purpose of this essay is to explain the mechanisms of neural communication, and the influence that different drugs have on this communication. The nervous system is made up of several cells that are called neurons, which are situated inside the Central Nervous System (Martin, Carlson & Buskit, 2013). Neurons comprise of three mechanisms, a cell body which is referred to as the soma, dendrites and an axon (Pinel, 2011).

In the article “Head Rush,” Laura Sanders explains the role blood has upon our brain. As blood travels our body, it takes in our information, thoroughly giving us details on our health ,genetics and many more. Our blood actually has a bigger job that many of us didn’t know about. Past experiments are suggesting that blood has the power to control nerve cell, instead of just taking commands from them. Science textbooks point out that astrocytes connect neurons and blood vessels, but it is still uncertain as to how neurons receives its signal to carry blood to the brain. Sanders talks about two neuroscientists Robert Hill and Jaime Grutzendler of Yale University published work. Hill claims that, “endothelial cells are perfectly poised to detect

amount of the fluid that protects the brain and spinal cord. The fluid is tested to

When inflammation occurs, the barrier becomes more permeable. The bacteria invade the respiratory passages and are disseminated by the bloodstream to the cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) space and the meninges of the brain and spinal cord. A gathering of fluid damages the cranial nerves, destroys cerebral spinal fluid pathways, and induces vein

Cerebrospinal fluid is a clear, colorless fluid that acts as a cushion to protect and support the brain inside of the skull, while also playing an essential role in the removal of waste products from the brain. It can be found surrounding both the brain and spinal cord. I was motivated to do research on the path that the cerebrospinal fluid takes from its formation site because of its importance in protecting the brain.

I have elected to pursue research in the field of neuroscience because I relish the approach of logical thinking to satisfy the curiosity of knowing things about me and the world around me. Neuroscience is a fascinating area with a limitless possibility of understanding and uncovering to resolve so many unanswered and unimagined questions. Although, in recent years, a large number of breakthroughs research have been done in the area of neuroscience, still, there is a lot more to discover and untangle in this area. Such an enormous amount of research work in this area has led open to the advancement in the diagnosis and therapeutic approaches to several neurological disorders and cancer such as glioma. Therefore, I decided

This is because astrocytes that become A1’s, do so due to exposure to the endotoxins; TNF-alpha, IL-1-alpha and C1q. (1) These induced A1’s produce large volumes of pro-inflammatory substances which cause the astrocytes to lose the ability to help neurons survive and grow connections. Instead, they induce the death of neurons and oligodendrocytes, the cells that help to grow the myelin sheath that insulates connections between neurons (2). On the other hand, A2s are induced by oxygen deprivation in the brain, which occurs during strokes. A2’s produce substances supporting neuron growth, health and survival near the stroke site (1). This clearly shows that the neurotoxic astrocytes are A1’s which seem to arise from endotoxins released by microglia when the brain suffers trauma or infection.

For nearly 100 years neural tissue has been transplanted in animals. Transplantation of neural tissue into humans, however, began only a few years ago (1). It has been found in animals, that fetal brain grafts in damaged adult host brains reduce some of the functional deficits caused by brain lesions. Even though some neurons from the transplanted tissue survive and develop reciprocal connections with host brain tissue, this is not enough to completely replace damaged fibers and support behavioral recovery Usually the grafts will not develop a normal morphological appearance, but some metabolic activity can be found within the transplant. Release and diffusion of trophic substances from the transplant and the damaged host brain may

The fluid in the brain (cerebrospinal fluid or CSF) is formed in the brain. CSF usually circulates through parts of the brain, its covering, and the spinal canal, and is then absorbed into the circulatory system.

     Tight junctions seal together the enclothelial cells of brain capillaries, which also are surrounded by a thick basement membrain. The process of many astrocyties pressing up against the capillaries is known as the Astrocyties Process. This process selectively passes some substances from the blood to the neurons, at the same time, inhibiting the passage of others.

When we use the phrase Blood Brain Barrier, (which for obvious reasons we'll refer to as BBB from here on out!), we're talking about all of these

A constant flow of blood to the brain is vital to its proper functioning. Blood supplies the brain with oxygen and to perform maximally the brain requires about 25% of the body’s oxygen (Webb, 2016). Lack of oxygen for a prolonged period results in cell death causing irreversible damage to the brain. Two paired arteries, four total, supply the vital source of blood to the brain and spinal cord.