Evidence map›Paper›PMID 41620404›Full record

ArticleNature communications2026

A spatiotemporal atlas of cerebrovascular development in zebrafish.

Xiaoyu Li, Shanshan Ke, Chengchao Wu, Mei Wu, Yunfei Ren, Zitong Wang, Jialan Tang, Yuying Zheng, Da Mi, Jingjing Zhang

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in Nature communications, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

10 authors.

Xiaoyu Li *Zhanjiang Key Laboratory of Zebrafish Model for Development and Disease, Affiliated Hospital of Guangdong Medical University, Zhanjiang, China.
Shanshan Ke *Zhanjiang Key Laboratory of Zebrafish Model for Development and Disease, Affiliated Hospital of Guangdong Medical University, Zhanjiang, China.
Chengchao Wu *Zhanjiang Key Laboratory of Zebrafish Model for Development and Disease, Affiliated Hospital of Guangdong Medical University, Zhanjiang, China.ORCID 0000-0002-7508-3379
Mei Wu *Zhanjiang Key Laboratory of Zebrafish Model for Development and Disease, Affiliated Hospital of Guangdong Medical University, Zhanjiang, China.
Yunfei RenZhanjiang Key Laboratory of Zebrafish Model for Development and Disease, Affiliated Hospital of Guangdong Medical University, Zhanjiang, China.
Zitong WangZhanjiang Key Laboratory of Zebrafish Model for Development and Disease, Affiliated Hospital of Guangdong Medical University, Zhanjiang, China.
Jialan TangZhanjiang Key Laboratory of Zebrafish Model for Development and Disease, Affiliated Hospital of Guangdong Medical University, Zhanjiang, China.
Yuying ZhengZhanjiang Key Laboratory of Zebrafish Model for Development and Disease, Affiliated Hospital of Guangdong Medical University, Zhanjiang, China.
Da MiState Key Laboratory of Membrane Biology, Tsinghua-Peking Center for Life Sciences, IDG/McGovern Institute for Brain Research, School of Life Sciences, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China.
Jingjing ZhangZhanjiang Key Laboratory of Zebrafish Model for Development and Disease, Affiliated Hospital of Guangdong Medical University, Zhanjiang, China. jingjing.zhang@live.com.ORCID 0000-0002-8789-4638

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

The vertebrate brain requires precisely patterned vasculature, yet the molecular and cellular dynamics of cerebrovascular development remain incompletely understood. While single-cell studies have profiled brain vasculature, integrating these data across molecular, cellular, and architectural scales remains challenging. We combine in situ sequencing, single-cell transcriptomics, and 3D vascular reconstruction to map zebrafish brain endothelial development (3-11 dpf). Quantitative 3D analysis reveals a developmental shift from lateral vascularization to intraparenchymal angiogenesis, coinciding with blood-brain barrier (BBB) maturation. We identify 6 endothelial subtypes with conserved mammalian signatures, showing capillary endothelial cells (CapECs), the predominant intracranial subtype exhibiting stage-specific enrichment of transporter and tight junction modules. Spatial transcriptomics show progressive CapEC enrichment in mesencephalic/metencephalic regions versus arterial EC accumulation in prosencephalic vessels. Functional assays confirm BBB competency by 11 dpf, while genetic perturbation of three uncharacterized CapEC-enriched genes (slc16a1a, zgc:158423, cldc1) disrupts vascular patterning and BBB integrity. This multidimensional atlas provides an evolutionary perspective on cerebrovascular development, bridges molecular profiles with vascular architecture, and offers insights into developmental dynamics across scales.

Indexed as

BrainZebrafishAngiogenesisAnimalsAnimals, Genetically ModifiedBlood-Brain BarrierEndothelial CellsGene Expression Regulation, DevelopmentalNeovascularization, PhysiologicZebrafish ProteinsZebrafish Proteins

Identifiers

PMID41620404
PMCPMC12963495

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LicenceCC BY-NC-ND
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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.