Growth factor signaling pathways in vascular development and disease

Abstract

Angiogenic blood vessel growth is essential to ensure organs receive adequate blood supply to support normal organ function and homeostasis. Angiogenesis involves a complex series of cellular events through which new vessels grow out from existing vasculature. Growth factor signaling, layered over a range of other signaling inputs, orchestrates this process. The response of endothelial cells (ECs) to growth factor signals must be carefully controlled through feedback mechanisms to prevent excessive vessel growth, remodeling or destabilization. In this article, we summarize recent findings describing how ECs respond to growth factor signals during blood vessel development and homeostasis and how perturbation of these responses can lead to disease.

Keywords:

• Angiogenesis
• VEGF
• angiopoietin
• BMP

Acknowledgments

The authors thank Robert C. A. Symons (Royal Melbourne Hospital) for helpful discussions on retinal vascular disease.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Funding

This work was made possible through Victorian State Government Operational Infrastructure Support and Australian Government NHMRC IRIISS. This work was supported by the National Health and Medical Research Council, Australia (Project Grant: 1125536 to L.C.); Australian Government Research Training Program Scholarship (to Z.L.G.), the L.E.W Carty Charitable Fund (to L.C.).