Rat Brain Vascular Pericytes (RBVP)

Overview

Rat Brain Vascular Pericytes (RBVP) is a cell model used for research applications where physiologically relevant identity and donor background support interpretation of experimental readouts. Rat Pericytes derived from Brain (Brain Vascular) within the Nervous system.

Brain Vascular Pericytes (BVP) are perivascular cells that are closely associated with the endothelium of capillaries and other small vessels [1] . BVP, located between endothelial cells and astrocytes in the brain, communicate with other cells by extending long cytoplasmic processes which wrap around the capillaries [1, 2] . BVP participate in a variety of processes including angiogenesis, endothelial cell survival, regulation of capillary blood flow, and establishment and maintenance of the blood-brain barrier [3,4] . Pericyte dysregulation has been linked to several pathological conditions such as hypertension, diabetic retinopathy, atherosclerosis, multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer’s disease, and tumor angiogenesis [2, 4] . The unique and diverse functions of BVP make them novel candidates for cell therapy in regenerative medicine. Cultured primary rat BVP (RBVP) are a useful in vitro model for understanding the molecular mechanisms of blood-brain barrier regulation and for studying a wide variety of central nervous system diseases. iXCells Biotechnologies provides high quality Rat Brain Vascular Pericytes (RBVP), which are isolated from adult rat brain and cryopreserved at P2, with ≥ 0.5 million cells in each vial. MBVP express Neural/glial antigen 2 (NG2) and α-smooth muscle actin. They are negative for HIV-1, HBV, HCV, mycoplasma, bacteria, yeast, and fungi and can further expand no more than 3 passages in Rat Pericyte Growth Medium ( Cat# MD-0030 ) under the condition suggested by iXCells Biotechnologies. Additional expansion may decrease the purity and proliferation rate. Figure 1. Phase contrast image of Rat Brain Vascular Pericytes (RBVP).

Key elements and design rationale

• Cell identity: Pericytes (Primary Cells)
• Source context: Brain; Brain Vascular; Nervous
• Donor background: Age: Adult
• Biosafety level: BSL-1 (follow your institution’s biosafety program and local regulations)

Product-specific elements (such as tissue source, donor background, and cell classification) help frame how results should be interpreted across assays and experimental conditions.

Biological background

Cells originating from the Nervous system are commonly studied to understand tissue-specific physiology, signaling, and responses to perturbations in controlled in vitro settings.

Across primary and specialty cell models, experimental outcomes can be influenced by donor heterogeneity, passage history, confluence, and media composition. For interpretation, it is common to validate key markers or functional phenotypes in the user’s assay context and to document culture variables consistently.

Research relevance and current trends

• Increasing use of primary and specialty cells to improve translational relevance for target biology and phenotypic screening.
• Adoption of 3D culture formats and co-culture systems to better capture tissue microenvironments and cell–cell interactions.
• Integration of functional readouts with single-cell and multi-omics profiling to connect phenotype with molecular state.
• Growth of human-relevant neural models (including glial components) to study circuit- and inflammation-linked phenotypes.

Common research applications

• Profile identity markers by flow cytometry or immunostaining in cultured cells
• Quantify neurite outgrowth and synaptic marker profiles in neural cultures
• Quantify functional responses to defined stimuli relevant to the model system
• Compare baseline phenotype across donors/conditions using gene expression profiling
• Measure neuroinflammatory signaling in neuron–glia or microglia-enriched models

Interpretation typically focuses on how a perturbation (e.g., cytokine exposure, metabolic stress, genetic manipulation, or compound treatment) shifts marker profiles or functional readouts relative to an appropriate control matched for donor and culture variables.

Notes for experimental interpretation

• Donor-to-donor heterogeneity can influence baseline phenotype and treatment response; include biological replicates when feasible.
• Passage number, confluence, and media composition can shift gene expression and functional readouts; track and report these variables consistently.
• Contamination control (including routine mycoplasma monitoring) supports reproducibility in downstream assays.
• Use appropriate negative/positive controls for the readout (e.g., unstimulated controls, pathway agonists/antagonists) to contextualize observed changes.

SKU:BHC18500105

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