title: What is a pericyte?
abstract: Pericytes, spatially isolated contractile cells on capillaries, have been reported to control cerebral blood flow physiologically, and to limit blood flow after ischaemia by constricting capillaries and then dying. Paradoxically, a recent paper dismisses the idea of pericytes controlling cerebral blood flow, despite confirming earlier data showing a role for pericytes. We show that these discrepancies are apparent rather than real, and depend on the new paper defining pericytes differently from previous reports. An objective definition of different sub-classes of pericyte along the capillary bed is needed to develop novel therapeutic approaches for stroke and disorders caused by pericyte malfunction.
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroscience, Physiology & Pharmacology, University College London, London, UK d.attwell@ucl.ac.uk.
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Attwell
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroscience, Physiology & Pharmacology, University College London, London, UK.
authors.forename: Anusha
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Mishra
authors.affiliation: School of Psychology, University of Sussex, Falmer, Brighton, UK.
authors.forename: Catherine N
authors.initials: CN
authors.lastname: Hall
authors.affiliation: Department of Neuroscience, Physiology & Pharmacology, University College London, London, UK.
authors.forename: Fergus M
authors.initials: FM
authors.lastname: O'Farrell
authors.affiliation: Institute of Neurological Sciences and Psychiatry, and Department of Neurology, Faculty of Medicine, Hacettepe University, Sihhiye, Ankara, Turkey tdalkara@hacettepe.edu.tr.
authors.forename: Turgay
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Dalkara
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002196:Capillaries / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology; D002560:Cerebrovascular Circulation / Q000502:physiology; D006801:Humans; D020286:Pericytes / Q000502:physiology* / Q000648:ultrastructure; D009626:Terminology as Topic
keywords: Pericyte; blood–brain barrier; capillary; cerebral blood flow; stroke