Astrocytic β1-integrin affects cellular composition of murine blood brain barrier in the cerebral cortex.

•This study used a mouse glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP)-cre transgenic line to selectively ablate β1-itg within astrocytes.•This study found that mutant mice had a decreased density of aquaporin-4 immunoreactivity within the perivascular astrocytic end-feet and vimentin and CD-31 immunoreactivity within endothelial cells.•These changes were not accompanied by functional changes in BBB in the uninjured brain as assessed by extravasation of large and small molecular weight molecules.•Mutant mice with selective ablation of β1-itg within astrocytes had an increased incidence of severe cystic injury in response to neonatal hypoxia.