title: Vascular endothelial cadherin is expressed by perineurial cells of peripheral nerve.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To study the distribution of vascular endothelial (VE) cadherin in peripheral nerves.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Using two monoclonal antibodies that detect VE-cadherin (TEA1.31 and 7B4) an immunohistochemical study of VE-cadherin expression in five common peroneal nerve biopsies and five skin specimens containing small peripheal nerves was performed. VE-cadherin was consistently expressed by the perineurium of nerves but not by other nerve elements such as Schwann cells or axons.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This report indicates that VE-cadherin is not. as was previously thought, a specific marker of endothelial cells and further defines the phenotype of the perineurial cell. The established role of VE-cadherin in controlling the permeability of vascular endothelium suggests that this molecule may have a similar role in the perineurium. VE-cadherin may therefore be important in the maintenance of the blood-nerve barrier, the peripheral nerve equivalent of the blood-brain barrier.
authors.affiliation: Department of Histopathology, Derriford Hospital, Plymouth, UK.
authors.forename: M E
authors.initials: ME
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.forename: T A
authors.initials: TA
authors.lastname: Jones
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Hilton
mesh_terms: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D015703:Antigens, CD; D015820:Cadherins / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D007124:Immunoenzyme Techniques; D018396:Mucin-1 / Q000378:metabolism; D010525:Peripheral Nerves / Q000378:metabolism*; D010543:Peroneal Nerve / Q000378:metabolism*; D000099152:Cadherin 5
chemical_list: D000911:Antibodies, Monoclonal; D015703:Antigens, CD; D015820:Cadherins; D018396:Mucin-1; D000099152:Cadherin 5