• Dolly Mehta, Krishnan Ravindran, and Wolfgang M Kuebler.
• Department of Pharmacology and Center for Lung and Vascular Biology, College of Medicine, University of Illinois at Chicago, Chicago, Illinois; dmehta@uic.edu.
• Am. J. Physiol. Lung Cell Mol. Physiol. 2014 Dec 15;307(12):L924-35.

AbstractEndothelial barrier function is an essential and tightly regulated process that ensures proper compartmentalization of the vascular and interstitial space, while allowing for the diffusive exchange of small molecules and the controlled trafficking of macromolecules and immune cells. Failure to control endothelial barrier integrity results in excessive leakage of fluid and proteins from the vasculature that can rapidly become fatal in scenarios such as sepsis or the acute respiratory distress syndrome. Here, we highlight recent advances in our understanding on the regulation of endothelial permeability, with a specific focus on the endothelial glycocalyx and endothelial scaffolds, regulatory intracellular signaling cascades, as well as triggers and mediators that either disrupt or enhance endothelial barrier integrity, and provide our perspective as to areas of seeming controversy and knowledge gaps, respectively.Copyright © 2014 the American Physiological Society.

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