The role of vascular endothelial growth inhibitor in wound healing.

Vascular endothelial growth inhibitor (VEGI) is an endothelial cell-specific cytokine and a potent inhibitor of endothelial cell proliferation and angiogenesis. The role of VEGI in angiogenesis related to tissue repair has previously not been investigated. Biopsies from different wound types were analysed by immunohistochemistry and quantitative polymerase chain reaction for the presence of VEGI protein and transcript, respectively. Human vascular endothelial cell line was transfected with VEGI expression plasmid and tested for their in vitro angiogenesis properties. Immunohistochemical staining for VEGI showed reduced expression in the dermal layer of the acute wounds compared with the chronic wound or normal skin. The ability of VEGI to prevent angiogenesis by in vitro assays showed that VEGI acts as a suppressor to the proliferation and microtubule formation of endothelial cells, and the addition of Hepatocyte Growth Factor had little effect on the ability of cell lines expressing the VEGI gene to increase microtubule formation. The aberrant expression of VEGI in different wound types appears to be linked to the outcome of the healing in these wounds. The altered expression of VEGI in chronic wounds constitutes an important target of future therapies.