Bureau W, Van Slyke P, Jones J, Han R N N, Ward Nicole L, Stewart D J, Dumont D J
Molecular and Cellular Biology Research, Sunnybrook and Women's Research Institute, 2075 Bayview Ave., Rm. S218, Toronto, ONT, Canada M4N 3M5.
Am J Physiol Heart Circ Physiol. 2006 Aug;291(2):H948-56. doi: 10.1152/ajpheart.00734.2005. Epub 2006 Apr 14.
Angiopoietin-2 has been implicated in the angiogenic response; however, this response has been tied to the expression of VEGF, and an independent angiogenic role has yet to be described. In this report, we detail the generation of transgenic mice that conditionally express angiopoietin-2 in the liver, resulting in sustained increases in circulating levels. These animals survive gestation and present with several vascular abnormalities, including an increase in the diameter of myocardial coronary vessels and a reduction in the density of endocardial vessels. In the lung, prominent increases in vessel diameter were observed. These vascular remodeling changes occurred in the absence of any apparent increase in VEGF expression. Our results illustrate that chronic systemic delivery of angiopoietin-2 induces angiogenesis in the absence of increased VEGF expression and that angiopoietin-2 promotes myocardial coronary vessel remodeling.
血管生成素-2与血管生成反应有关；然而，这种反应与血管内皮生长因子（VEGF）的表达相关，其独立的血管生成作用尚未见报道。在本报告中，我们详细描述了条件性在肝脏中表达血管生成素-2的转基因小鼠的产生，这导致循环水平持续升高。这些动物能度过妊娠期，并出现多种血管异常，包括心肌冠状动脉直径增加和心内膜血管密度降低。在肺中，观察到血管直径显著增加。这些血管重塑变化发生在VEGF表达没有任何明显增加的情况下。我们的结果表明，在VEGF表达未增加的情况下，血管生成素-2的慢性全身递送可诱导血管生成，且血管生成素-2可促进心肌冠状动脉重塑。
