Erythritol and brain blood vessel cells in lab tests
What it found
Erythritol raised stress markers and lowered a protective gas in human brain blood vessel cells grown in the lab.
It also weakened the cells' ability to release a clot-dissolving protein.
What they found
Animal and lab studies
Cell stress went up
In lab-grown human brain blood vessel cells, erythritol roughly doubled the level of reactive oxygen species. These are molecules that cause cell stress. The cells also made more antioxidant proteins to cope.
Less nitric oxide made
The treated cells produced less nitric oxide, dropping from 7.3 to 5.8 µmol/L. Nitric oxide helps keep blood vessels relaxed. Changes in the enzymes that control it matched this drop.
More endothelin-1 made
Cells exposed to erythritol made more endothelin-1, rising from 26.9 to 34.6 pg/mL. This substance narrows blood vessels. The cells also showed higher levels of its precursor protein.
Weaker clot-dissolving response
When given a clotting trigger, untreated cells released more of a protein called t-PA that breaks down clots. Erythritol-treated cells barely increased their t-PA output at all.
What the authors conclude
- They say erythritol harms several key functions of brain blood vessel cells in the lab.
- Their results suggest this could help explain why erythritol is linked to a higher risk of stroke caused by blocked blood flow.
How it was done
Erythritol is linked to higher rates of heart and brain blood vessel problems. The authors wanted to see how it affects the cells that line small blood vessels in the brain.
They grew human brain blood vessel cells in the lab. They exposed them to 6 mM erythritol, matching about 30 g in a sweetened drink, for 3 hours. They then measured stress markers, gases and proteins the cells made.
What it can’t tell you
- We summarised it from the abstract only.
- These are lab-grown cells, not whole people. Results in a dish cannot show what happens when someone drinks a sweetened beverage.
- The cells were exposed for only 3 hours. Scientists do not yet know if longer or repeated exposure has the same effect.
Who paid
- Funding
- Funded by American Heart Association (AHA) (from the PubMed record).
- Authors work at
- Integrative Vascular Biology Laboratory, United States
The paper
- Title
- The non-nutritive sweetener erythritol adversely affects brain microvascular endothelial cell function
- Type
- Study
- Evidence
- Animals and lab studies
- Summarised from
- Abstract only
- Cite
- Berry AR, Ruzzene ST, Ostrander EI, et al (2025). The non-nutritive sweetener erythritol adversely affects brain microvascular endothelial cell function. Journal of applied physiology (Bethesda, Md.. doi:10.1152/japplphysiol.00276.2025PubMed 40459966DOI
Summary written 1 Oct 2026. Check it against the paper before it changes what you eat. How we summarise papers · Report an error