Blood-brain barrier transport mechanisms (BBB transport)

The blood-brain barrier (BBB) transport mechanisms are a collection of physiological processes that regulate the exchange of substances between the blood and the brain parenchyma (Wikipedia, 2024). These mechanisms include passive diffusion for lipophilic molecules, carrier-mediated transport (CMT) for essential nutrients like glucose and amino acids, and receptor-mediated transcytosis (RMT) for larger proteins such as insulin and transferrin (NIH, 2023). Active efflux transporters, such as P-glycoprotein (P-gp), play a critical role in protecting the brain by removing potentially toxic xenobiotics and drugs (MDPI, 2024). Dysfunction of these transport systems is implicated in the pathogenesis of neurodegenerative diseases like Alzheimer's and Parkinson's, as well as acute conditions like stroke and traumatic brain injury (NIH, 2023). In pharmacology, these mechanisms represent a significant hurdle for drug delivery, leading to the development of specialized strategies to bypass or exploit these pathways for therapeutic access to the central nervous system (ResearchGate, 2022). For instance, 'Trojan horse' approaches utilize RMT to shuttle large molecules across the barrier by targeting receptors like the transferrin receptor (NIH, 2022). Conversely, inhibiting efflux transporters can enhance the brain penetration of certain chemotherapeutics, though this carries risks of increased neurotoxicity (MDPI, 2017).

Other names

BBB transportNeurovascular unit transportBrain capillary transportCerebrovascular transport

Carrier-mediated transport (CMT), Receptor-mediated transcytosis (RMT), Adsorptive-mediated transcytosis (AMT), Passive diffusion, and Active efflux (NIH, 2023; Wikipedia, 2024).