Fig. 3: P. falciparum iRBC-egress media causes inter-endothelial gaps impairing microvascular integrity. | Nature Communications

Fig. 3: P. falciparum iRBC-egress media causes inter-endothelial gaps impairing microvascular integrity.

From: Plasmodium falciparum egress disrupts endothelial junctions and activates JAK-STAT signaling in a microvascular 3D blood-brain barrier model

Fig. 3

a TEM images showing an inter-endothelial gap formed in 3D-BBB microvessels exposed to iRBC-egress media (right), compared to an intact junction in control microvessels (left). Asterisk indicates parasite egress products. Scale bar = 2 μm. b Scatter plot comparing the percentage of tight junctions over total junctional length in 3D-BBB microvessels exposed to control uRBC media (N = 1 microvessel) or iRBC-egress media (N = 2 microvessels) (top), and bar plot quantifying the percentage of inter-endothelial gaps found by TEM on 3D-BBB microvessels incubated with control uRBC media (N = 1) or iRBC-egress media (N = 2) (bottom). For both graphs, each dot represents the quantification of a TEM section from a different microvessel area with 10–25 quantified junctions, the median value is reported as a line with error bars indicating the IQR (Two-tailed Mann-Whitney U test). c Maximum z-projection of a confocal image showing the junctional marker VE-cadherin (white) in a microvessel incubated with control media or iRBC-egress media. DAPI (blue) stains large nuclei corresponding to BBB cells, and nucleic acids found in iRBC-egress media, presenting small punctate labeling. Asterisks indicate inter-endothelial gaps. Scale bar = 50 μm. Representative image from at least 3 independent experiments with similar results. d Representative images showing 70 kDa FITC-dextran diffusion through the lateral wall of the 3D-BBB before and after 24 h incubation with control media or iRBC-egress media. Scale bar = 50 μm. e Ratio of the apparent permeability calculated at 24 h post-incubation and at pre-incubation with control media or iRBC-egress media. Each point represents the ratio from an ROI coming from 3D-BBB microvessels exposed to control media (N = 4 microvessels) and iRBC-egress media (N = 10) (Two-tailed Mann-Whitney U test). Box plots display the median (line within the box), IQR range (box), and range (whiskers). Data are provided as a Source Data file.

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