A Look at the Conversations Between Blood Vessels and Neurons

A study published in Cell Reports shows how blood vessels communicate with neurons in the peripheral nervous system. Researchers at Pompeu Fabrahow University used imaging to identify how communication regulates nerve cell differentiation and proliferation. 

Specifically, the team looked at filopodia and their ligands to examine their signaling mechanisms. "It was known that vessel cells and stem cells in the brain communicate but this is the first time it has been witnessed through cytonemes in the peripheral nervous system," principal investigator Berta Alsina explains. "By using high-resolution spatiotemporal visualization techniques in vivo we have seen them in real-time,” she says.

Characterizing these mechanisms helps researchers understand neuronal precursors' development. First author Laura Taberner adds that "If all neuronal precursors proliferated and differentiated we would not have this reservoir and there would not be the opportunity for regeneration." 

Their findings identify what is responsible for regulating differentiation: oxygen. Neuronal precursors proliferate initially in a hypoxic environment and later when blood vessels connect to each other during development, it becomes normoxic, making oxygen the cue for differentiation to begin. “This new knowledge will improve protocols for in vitro differentiation of neurons for regenerative therapies," Taberner adds.

Image caption: Filopodia of the blood vessels (magenta) touching the sensory neurons (green), which also emit filopodia toward the blood vessels. Image credit: Laura Taberner, Pompeu Fabra University.