Mural cells protect the adult brain from hemorrhage but do not control the blood–brain barrier in developing zebrafish (opens in new tab)

The blood–brain barrier (BBB) protects the brain from circulating metabolites and plays central roles in neurological diseases. Endothelial cells (ECs) of the BBB are enwrapped by mural cells including pericytes and vascular smooth muscle cells (vSMCs) that regulate angiogenesis, vessel stability and barrier function. To explore mural cell control of the BBB, we investigated neurovascular phenotypes in zebrafish pdgfrb mutants that lack brain pericytes and vSMCs. As expected, mutants showed a...