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. 2021 Jun 30;9(7):759. doi: 10.3390/biomedicines9070759

Figure 2.

Figure 2

In pathological conditions, pericytes generate various inflammatory factors. Pericytes secrete IL-6 that can polarize parenchymal microglia to a proinflammatory phenotype to activate microglia (1). The secretion of chemokines (CCL2, CXCL1, CXCL8, and CXCL10) by pericytes recruits leukocytes to the CNS parenchyma via the upregulation of ICAM-1 and VCAM-1 adhesion molecules on the endothelium (2). MMP-9 secretion stimulates the production and secretion of vascular endothelial growth factor (VEGF), resulting in endothelial dysfunction (3). Secretion of reactive oxygen species/reactive nitrogen species (ROS/RNS), nitric oxide (NO), and prostaglandins (PGE2) by pericytes lead to vasodilation and breaching of the blood–brain barrier. Pericytes themselves are morphologically altered by inflammatory mediators (4).