Tissue expression of platelet endothelial cell adhesion molecule-1 at pre and postnatal murine development

Endothelial cells, at the cell-cell borders, express PECAM-1, and have been implicated in vascular functions. The monoclonal antibody MEC 13.3 recognizes PECAM-1 molecule from mouse vessels and allows to analyze the ontogeny of mouse endothelium. At the present, little is known about the molecular basis of differentiation pathways of endothelial cells, that enables its morphological heterogeneity. The purpose of this study was to analyze the pattern of PECAM-1 expression, employing monoclonal antibody MEC 13.3, in cellular suspensions obtained from different mouse organs at pre and postnatal stages. Fluorescence activated cell sorter analysis showed a different profile of the glycoprotein expression in a cell population with size and granularity selected by 1G11 endothelial cell line. The expression differs from prenatal to postnatal developmental stages in a given organ, and among the organs studied. Another cell population, with a size and granularity higher than 1G11 endothelial cell line, coexists in cellular suspensions obtained from liver, gut and brain. These cells could be related to those detected by means of immunoenzyme methods which showed a non-differentiated morphology. The different PECAM-1 pattern expression could reflect potential organ-specific differentiation pathways during development and according to organs environment. The existence of another cell population with a size and granularity higher than 1G11 endothelial cell line required a phenotypic characterization.