Development and Validation of an In-Cell Western for Quantifying P-Glycoprotein Expression in Human Brain Microvascular Endothelial (hCMEC/D3) Cells

Abstract

An in-cell western (ICW) protocol detecting the relative expression of P-glycoprotein (P-gp) in human cerebro-microvascular endothelial cells (hCMEC/D3) was developed and optimized, with the intention of improving throughput relative to western blotting (WB). For validation of the ICW protocol, hCMEC/D3 cells were incubated with known P-gp upregulators (10 μM rifampicin and 5 μM SR12813) and treated with siRNA targeted against MDR1, before measuring changes in P-gp expression, using both ICW and WB in parallel. To confirm a relationship between the detected P-gp expression and function, the uptake of the P-gp substrate rhodamine-123 was assessed following SR12813 treatment. Rifampicin and SR12813 significantly upregulated P-gp expression (1.5-fold and 1.9-fold, respectively) compared to control, as assessed by the ICW protocol. WB analysis of the same treatments revealed 1.4-fold and 1.5-fold upregulations. MDR1 siRNA reduced P-gp abundance by 20% and 35% when assessed by ICW and WB, respectively. SR12813 treatment reduced rhodamine-123 uptake by 18%, indicating that the observed changes in P-gp expression by ICW were associated with comparable functional changes. The correlation of P-gp upregulation by WB, rhodamine-123 uptake, and the ICW protocol provide validation of a new ICW method as an alternative method for quantification of P-gp in hCMEC/D3 cells.

Keywords: ABC transporters; P-glycoprotein; blood-brain barrier; cell culture; drug resistance; efflux pumps; endothelial; membrane transporter.