VEGF causes translocation of Syx from endothelial cell junctions, promoting junction disassembly, whereas Angtiopoietin-1 maintains Syx at the junctions and stabilizes them.

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We have identified a novel population of cells in the subventricular zone (SVZ) of the mammalian brain that expresses ␤4 tubulin (␤T4) and has properties of primitive neuroectodermal cells. ␤T4 cells are scattered throughout the SVZ of the lateral ventricles in adult human brain and are significantly increased in the SVZs bordering demyelinated white matter in multiple sclerosis brains. In human fetal brain, ␤T4 cell densities peak during the latter stages of gliogenesis, which occurs in the SVZ of the lateral ventricles. ␤T4 cells represent Ͻ2% of the cells present in neurospheres generated from postnatal rat brain but Ͼ95% of cells in neurospheres treated with the anti-mitotic agent Ara C. ␤T4 cells produce oligodendrocytes, neurons, and astrocytes in vitro. We compared the myelinating potential of ␤T4-positive cells with A2B5-positive oligodendrocyte progenitor cells after transplantation (25,000 cells) into postnatal day 3 (P3) myelindeficient rat brains. At P20, the progeny of ␤T4 cells myelinated up to 4 mm of the external capsule, which significantly exceeded that of transplanted A2B5-positive progenitor cells. Such extensive and rapid mature CNS cell generation by a relatively small number of transplanted cells provides in vivo support for the therapeutic potential of ␤T4 cells. We propose that ␤T4 cells are an endogenous cell source that can be recruited to promote neural repair in the adult telencephalon.