Hemorrhage is responsible for a large percentage of trauma-related deaths but the mechanisms underlying tissue ischemia are complex and not well understood. Despite the evidence linking glycocalyx degradation and hemorrhagic shock, there is no direct data obtained in vivo showing glycocalyx thickness reduction in skeletal muscle venules after hemorrhage. We hypothesize that damage to the endoth...

The evidence shows that endothelial glycocalyx exerts an important role in inflammation and atherosclerosis. We previously demonstrated that hydrodynamic force such as shear stress induces the remodeling of the major component of glycocalyx including glypican-1 with attached heparan sulfate, and that sphingosine-1-phosphate (S1P) protects the glycocalyx against syndecan-1 ectodomain shedding an...

EARLY ELECTRON MICROSCOPIC observations identified an extracellular coating of anionic polysaccharides on the luminal surface of vascular endothelial cells. This coating was named glycocalyx by Bennet (2) in 1962 and was hypothesized to contribute to the transport properties of the capillary wall. Experimental data to support a physiological role for the endothelial glycocalyx remained lacking ...

Compelling evidence continues to emerge suggesting that the glycocalyx surface layer on vascular endothelial cells plays a determining role in numerous physiological processes including inflammation, microvascular permeability, and endothelial mechanotransduction. Previous research has shown that enzymes degrade the glycocalyx, whereas inflammation causes shedding of the layer. To track the end...

The glycocalyx, and the thicker endothelial surface layer (ESL), are necessary both for endothelial barrier function and for sensing mechanical forces in the adult. The goal of this study is to use a combination of imaging techniques to establish when the glycocalyx and endothelial surface layer form during embryonic development and to determine the biological significance of the glycocalyx lay...

Detection of cancer at an early stage is pivotal for successful treatment and long term survival, yet early diagnosis requires sensitive and specific markers that can be easily detected by screening procedures. Differences in the surface structure of tumor and healthy cells, if sufficiently pronounced and discernible, may serve that purpose. We analyzed the luminal surface of healthy and neopla...

While previous studies have indicated an important role for the endothelial glycocalyx in regulation of microvascular function, it was recently shown that acute enzymatic glycocalyx degradation in rats was associated with an impaired insulin-mediated glucose disposal. The aim of this study was to determine whether glycocalyx damage in skeletal muscle occurs at an early stage of diet-induced obe...

Compelling evidence continues to emerge suggesting that the glycocalyx surface layer on vascular endothelial cells plays a determining role in numerous physiological processes including inflammation, microvascular permeability, and endothelial mechanotransduction. Previous research has shown that enzymes degrade the glycocalyx, whereas inflammation causes shedding of the layer. To track the end...

Smart mechanisms allow frictionless slipping of rather rigid erythrocytes (red blood cells, RBC) through narrow blood vessels. Nature solved this problem in an elegant way coating the moving object (RBC) and the tunnel wall (endothelium) by negative charges (glycocalyx). As long as these surfaces are intact, repulsive forces create a 'security zone' that keeps the respective surfaces separated ...

Damage to the endothelial glycocalyx, which helps maintain vascular homeostasis, heightens the sensitivity of the vasculature to atherogenic stimuli. Patients with renal failure have endothelial dysfunction and increased risk for cardiovascular morbidity and mortality, but the state of the endothelial glycocalyx in these patients is unknown. Here, we used Sidestream Darkfield imaging to detect ...