The angiopoietin1–Akt pathway regulates barrier function of the cultured spinal cord microvascular endothelial cells through Eps8

• We set up an in vitro BSCB model using spinal cord microvascular endothelial cells.
• Ang1 regulates the in vitro BSCB function via Akt activity.
• The expression level of Eps8 is related with the barrier function of the BSCB.
• Ang1–Akt regulates BSCB via F-actin remodeling and junction protein redistribution.
• Knockdown of Eps8 antagonizes the effects of Ang1 on the in vitro BSCB.

In mammalian central nervous system (CNS), the integrity of the blood–spinal cord barrier (BSCB), formed by tight junctions (TJs) between adjacent microvascular endothelial cells near the basement membrane of capillaries and the accessory structures, is important for relatively independent activities of the cellular constituents inside the spinal cord. The barrier function of the BSCB are tightly regulated and coordinated by a variety of physiological or pathological factors, similar with but not quite the same as its counterpart, the blood–brain barrier (BBB). Herein, angiopoietin 1 (Ang1), an identified ligand of the endothelium-specific tyrosine kinase receptor Tie-2, was verified to regulate barrier functions, including permeability, junction protein interactions and F-actin organization, in cultured spinal cord microvascular endothelial cells (SCMEC) of rat through the activity of Akt. Besides, these roles of Ang1 in the BSCB in vitro were found to be accompanied with an increasing expression of epidermal growth factor receptor pathway substrate 8 (Eps8), an F-actin bundling protein. Furthermore, the silencing of Eps8 by lentiviral shRNA resulted in an antagonistic effect vs. Ang1 on the endothelial barrier function of SCMEC. In summary, the Ang1–Akt pathway serves as a regulator in the barrier function modulation of SCMEC via the actin-binding protein Eps8.