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Lymphatic vessels at the base of the mouse brain provide direct drainage to the periphery

A set of lymphatic vessels that wrap around the base of the mouse brain have been shown to drain fluid from the brain into the peripheral lymphatic system, and to exhibit a decline in function with ageing.
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  1. Taija Mäkinen

    1. Taija Mäkinen is in the Department of Immunology, Genetics and Pathology, Uppsala University, 751 85 Uppsala, Sweden.

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Lymphatic vessels around the body drain excess fluid and protein from tissues and serve as a conduit for trafficking immune cells. The central nervous system (CNS) was long thought to lack lymphatic drainage; fluid and macromolecules were instead thought to be cleared from the CNS by other routes, such as through absorption into the bloodstream, or through channels running along the outside of blood vessels or nerves to reach the lymphatic system outside the CNS1,2. A few years ago, lymphatic vessels were discovered in the dura mater3,4, the outermost of the three meningeal membranes that envelop the CNS. They were reported to provide a route for immune cells trafficking from the CNS and for clearing CNS waste3,4, and to thus represent potential therapeutic targets for neurological diseases5,6. However, exactly how they might enable drainage from the brain has remained unclear, and whether they even have a role in drainage has been questioned1,2,7.

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Nature 572, 34-35 (2019)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-019-02166-7

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