Isolation of Mouse Primary Aortic Endothelial Cells by Selection with Specific Antibodies.

Endothelial cells (ECs) are key blood-vessel-wall components that play critical roles in the regulation of many physiological processes, including angiogenesis, coagulation, and vascular tone control, and in pathological events such as vessel inflammation and leukocyte infiltration. EC dysfunction is one of the first events associated with the development of atherosclerosis and is sustained throughout progression of the disease. The study of ECs in vitro has become an invaluable tool for investigating these vascular processes at the molecular level, and is widely used in the search for therapeutic targets and strategies. This chapter describes a protocol for the isolation and culture of primary mouse aortic ECs based on antibody-mediated EC selection.